February Newsletter

February Newsletter

Hello Eco-Coordinators,

As we approach the midpoint of the academic year, now is the prime time to progress your Eco-Schools work, educating young people about environmental issues and empowering them to create change. This month’s newsletter features an exciting new Curriculum Links resource, the return of the Great Big School Clean, and the Cut Your Carbon 2024 Impact Report. Read on for more!

Eco-Education Resources

We compiled 40 of our favourite environmental education classroom resources into one convenient guide. From lesson plans to bite-sized information on various environmental issues, this list provides plenty of inspiration for meeting the requirements for Step 4: Curriculum Links! Click the link above to access. Nurseries, check out our list of eco-themed learning activities for early years!

50 Eco-Projects

To inspire you for ‘Step 3: Action Plan’, don’t forget the directory of our 50 favourite Eco-Projects (link above). Updated for ’24-25, this list provides a trove of inspiration for projects and activities that your young people can deliver to make a huge difference! Nurseries, check out our list of Sustainable Changes for early years settings!

Cut Your Carbon Impact Report

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Cut Your Carbon campaign during November! Our team has crunched the numbers and estimated that your efforts prevented over 500,000 kg of CO2E from entering our atmosphere! You can read the full report by clicking the title above. Don’t forget to include your participation in your Eco-Schools application. The campaign will return in November 2025 with exciting new updates planned.

Eco-Schools Training

Don’t miss out on the Eco-Schools Training! Session 2 will guide you through steps 4-7 of the programme, offering best practices and advice to educate young people about environmental issues and maximise your environmental impacts. Session 3 is delivered in April, just before the opening of the application window, and provides guidance on submitting a successful Green Flag application.

The Great Big School Clean

The Great Big School Clean is back for 2025! Join us between 21st March and 6th April for our nations biggest mass-action environmental campaign. Not only is the Great Big School Clean a fantastic addition to your Eco-Schools’ Action Plan, every school that pledges to pick will also receive a variety of new resources that raise awareness about the environmental and social impacts of littering. Registration opens here on 14th February.

What Else is Happening?

  • This week (3rd-9th February) is Children’s Mental Health Week. You still have a little bit of time left to participate. Head to Place2Be’s website to download their free resources or check out our Eco-Anxiety Discussion Kit released last year as part of our Healthy Summer Toolkit!
  • Registration for Learning Through Landscapes’ Local School Nature Grants scheme is open now until the 4th April. Open to nurseries and schools, this grant provides £500 towards outdoor learning products including litter-picking equipment, planters, and much more!
  • This year’s World Book Day is on March 7th. This year why not focus on environmental literature. Children’s reading charity Book Trust has created a list of their favourite books about the environment for younger and older children.
  • You still have until 14th February to count birds in your grounds as part of RSPB’s Big Schools’ Birdwatch. Alongside the birdwatch,  don’t forget about RSPB’s other wonderful teaching resources. From their 24 Wild Challenges to visiting one of their reserves or activity centres, their fabulous experts have plenty to offer!
  • If your school is looking to become zero carbon, don’t forget that Let’s Go Zero has a team of Climate Action Advisors who are available to support. Their advisors offer free advice to help you form a climate action plan and can even complete your carbon calculation using our Count Your Carbon tool. They can also help find funding opportunities to make your eco-dreams a reality!
  • Nearly 900 schools have calculated their carbon footprint using Count Your Carbon, our free tool for schools. We’re excited to reach 1,000 calculations, which will allow us to begin analysis of the data! To help us reach this milestone faster, we’ve produced a new guidance video to help you complete a calculation. Check it out here.

Have a fab Feb!

The Eco-Schools Team