Francis Review – The latest in our series of posts about the Francis Review of the national curriculum were published last week. All the posts can be found here. More will be published during October. Do let us know what you think.
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Delivering Climate Action – At the first University of Bath I-SEE webinar of the season the Rt Hon Chris Skidmore OBE will be speaking on the future of net zero and the UK’s commitment to deliver on its climate targets. Skidmore was MP for Kingswood from 2010-2024 during part of which time he served as Minister for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation. He was also Chair of the All Party Group on the Environment. He resigned from Parliament in January 2024 in protest at new legislation promoting additional oil and gas licences. He is currently a professor at Bath, Chair of the Climate Action Coalition, a founding partner of Desmos Capital Partners, Chief Operating Officer of Better Earth, and a founding advisor of Smart Society Ventures. The webinar is on October 1st 1630 to 1730. Registration details here.
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Children For Change – This is a new e-book looking to inspire 8-12 year-olds to take action to tackle climate change. Curated by Konnie Huq, it features a contributions by Joseph Coelho, Axel Scheffler, AM Dassu, Rob Biddulph, and Charlie Higson. Details here.
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Blue Carbon – A new series of reports was published on September 19th by a coalition of nature charities which means the UK is the first nation to map and estimate the amount of carbon stored in its seabed habitats, including in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). The Blue Carbon Mapping Project is carried out by the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) on behalf of WWF, The Wildlife Trusts and the RSPB. It reveals that 244 m tonnes of organic carbon are stored in just the top 10cm of UK seabed habitats, with 98% stored in seabed sediments such as mud and silt. UK seabed habitats could annually capture almost three times the carbon sequestered by UK forests. You can access the entire UK blue carbon inventory via DROPBOX. It includes a scientific report, technical summary and press release for all UK seas, plus the UK-wide assessment and images of blue carbon habitats.
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Message from the Ministry – Here’s the latest update from the Ministry of Eco-Education. Its mission is to support teachers to embed sustainability across the curriculum. It says that last year it “engaged” half of all schools in England (11,500) and is on a mission to reach every one. There are a lot of links to explore.
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Green Quality – The Greening Education Partnership says that the publication of the Green school quality standard is an important first step towards the goal of greening 50% of schools in all countries by 2030. More information is available on their dedicated webpage. They are hosting a series of capacity-building webinars highlighting the latest issues and challenges in climate change and education and sharing good practices. This next webinar is scheduled for October 17th. You will find the programme here and can register here.
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Schools for Nature – WWF has released a new report which presents survey findings and shares experiences of schools successfully incorporating high‐quality nature experiences into their curricula. The report aims to spark a broader discussion on the role of charities and schools in ensuring that every pupil has equal opportunities to experience nature.
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Committee Chair – Helen Hayes MP is now the Chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee. Click on the links to see what she had to say about climate change in 2019 and about the climate emergency in 2021. She was a member of the Environmental Audit Committee during part of the 2019 – 2024 parliament, and in 2017 was celebrated by the BCT as a champion of the common pipistrelle.
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#HiddenNatureWeek – From October 14th to the 20th we’re invited to Celebrate Hidden Nature Week with the National Education Nature Park. The Park says: Have you got plants on your playground or bees behind your benches? How about creepy crawlies on your climbing frames or beetles in your bike sheds? Discover what wildlife is hiding around your school site by taking part in the Hidden Nature Challenge from the National Education Nature Park this October and have the chance to win some amazing outdoor learning prizes. They’ve got three bundles to give away, made up of prizes to help you on your Nature Park journey including a camera trap and books from the Natural History Museum and RHS.
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Butterfly Emergency – Butterfly Conservation reports a marked and concerning decline in butterfly numbers. It was the worst summer in the Butterfly Count’s history for Common Blue, Holly Blue, Green-veined White, Small White, Small Tortoiseshell, Painted Lady and Scotch Argus. Further, a large majority of species (81%) showed declines in the number seen this year compared with 2023. See here for the full results of the Count with details on individual species and how the data breaks down across the UK nations. What can your school to to help fix this problem?