Understanding Sustainability

Sustainability has become one an extremely important issue in schools in recent years, and all school leaders are now required to consider the ways in which they could be working to achieve their sustainable schools targets.

In March 2005, the DCSF outlined its commitment to sustainable development in an action plan for sustainable development in schools, ‘Securing the Future’.

The consultation document invited schools to become models of sustainable development for their communities and set schools a series of targets that they were expected to achieve by 2020.

The targets were divided into eight themes, termed ‘doorways’, which each looked at different areas of school life and provided pointers on ways to build a sustainable school.

This section looks in depth at each of the sustainable schools doorways, providing a summary understanding of each doorway and looking in detail at some ways in which the doorways affect individual schools.

Within each section, we have included articles from organisations and individuals working within the education sector. These include renowned organisation such as the Building Research Establishment (BRE), Sustrans, the Renewable Energy Association (REA) and many more.

By focusing on specific case studies and examples, we hope that you gain a clearer understanding of the types of issues affecting schools, and learn valuable information on how to become a sustainable school.

Thesearticles were all included in the 2009 edition of the Handbook of Sustainable Procurement, which has been circulated to 32,000 schools to wide acclaim. To read articles, case studies and evaluations from previous editions of the Handbook click here.

In This Section

Doorway 1 – Food & Drink
Looking at the changing attitudes towards healthy and sustainable food and drink in both the classroom and the canteen.

Doorway 2 - Energy & Water
How schools can change their water and energy consumption habits in order to become more sustainable.

Doorway 3 - Travel & Traffic
How schools can become models of sustainable travel by creating conditions whereby more children can travel to school by foot, bicycle or bus.

Doorway 4 - Purchasing & Waste
Why sustainable procurement and waste management should form the heart of a sustainable school action plan.

Doorway 5 - Buildings & Grounds
Exploring the impact that well designed and maintained school buildings and grounds have on pupils’ learning and achievement.

Doorway 6 - Inclusion & Participation
How schools can promote community cohesion by providing an inclusive, welcoming atmosphere that values everyone’s contribution.

Doorway 7 - Local Well-Being
Examining how schools can act as hubs of learning and change within their local communities, contributing to the environment and quality of life of local residents and strengthening key relationships between community members.

Doorway 8 - Global Dimension
Why sustainable development cannot be achieved in isolation, and how schools can become models of good global citizenship.