As children go back to school after the summer holidays, a new report, published by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), finds that, despite the hard work of many passionate teachers, most pupils in UK schools are missing out on regular opportunities to experience nature that have been found to improve mental wellbeing and attainment.
New research in the Schools for Nature report, conducted by The Education Company, and with input from 1,885 schools across the UK, shows that only 24% of schools provide daily opportunities for pupils to experience nature.
The report also reveals that as pupils progress from primary to secondary school, the likelihood of experiencing nature on a daily basis at school diminishes, dropping from 30% to 12%.
56% of secondary schools said they don’t offer any outdoor learning to any pupils. Beyond the school gate, 79% of parents in the UK believe their children’s screentime has gone up since the pandemic.
The report data also reveals a ‘nature gap’ between schools in better-off and more deprived areas.
While 52% of students in state schools with a low percentage of free school meals are given daily opportunities to experience nature, only 18% attending state schools with a high percentage of free school meals have these opportunities.
Overall, the report finds that currently, students’ chances of benefiting from spending time in nature – including benefits to their physical health, mental wellbeing and quality of education – are a lottery, depending on school year group, size, location and affluence of the catchment area.
Critically, being in nature not only helps pupils, it helps teachers, too. Teachers can also benefit from higher job satisfaction through outdoor learning, including positive effects on their teaching practice and professional development.
The report includes case studies on schools that have successfully integrated nature into their curriculum and offers practical advice on how more schools can introduce them.
In light of the findings, WWF wants all schools to be supported to provide regular nature experiences and charities will be key to realising this vision.
‘Schools and teachers have a vital and unique role to play in building children’s connection with nature – helping them learn about the wonder of the natural world and how to protect it.
‘Getting out into nature is good for our physical and mental wellbeing too – and it doesn’t have to cost the Earth. Bringing nature into the playground, even in small ways, can give pupils a chance to learn and connect with the natural world around them.’TANYA STEELE
CEO at WWF
Opportunities for pupils to experience nature at school can take place more formally during lessons, as part of their free time, or through school trips, extra-curricular activities and clubs.
It doesn’t need to be expensive and can be included in a wide range of subjects.
But less than a third (27%) of UK schools say that outdoor learning is embedded into their curriculum for all students.
Embedding outdoor learning into the curriculum means that teachers are planning when, how and what to teach outside the classroom, and is a way to ensure that nature features in students’ learning provision.
Pupils having access to nature during their free time requires either a natural environment onsite, or natural elements introduced.
Yet half of schools in the UK say that none of their pupils have daily opportunities to spend free time or play in a nature-rich environment at school.
Overall, the report indicates that the most common practice when it comes to access to nature is through school trips and extra-curricular activities and clubs, with a quarter (25%) of schools saying that school trips to natural environments take place annually for all, or nearly all students.
While school trips and extra-curricular nature-based activities are important, they’re also infrequent and optional.
The cost-of-living crisis is causing both parents and schools to revise their engagement with school trips, and voluntary activities are likely to attract students who are already engaged with, or interested in, nature.
Rather than addressing inequalities based on education phase and socio-economic factors, optional activities may actually reinforce and exacerbate existing disparities.
We know that spending time in nature is good for us – and a growing body of evidence shows that when children and young people connect with nature through learning, there are a wide range of positive outcomes for pupils, teachers and for nature.
Children and young people’s mental wellbeing has worsened over recent years, according to experts. In contrast, recent reports have shown that children show greater resilience, improved self-esteem and increased self-efficacy when engaged in outdoor learning.
Overall, children who experience nature-rich, immersive learning are more likely to feel good about themselves, resulting in improved wellbeing.
Improved attainment: Pupils are more motivated, less stressed and more positive when learning in a natural setting, leading to better education outcomes. Teachers also report a reduction in disruptive behaviour, allowing pupils to focus on their work, and benefits to pupils who struggle in traditional classroom-based settings.
Survey data from the largest outdoor-based learning project commissioned in the UK reveals that 72% of project schools reported positive impacts on teachers’ own health and wellbeing.
The majority of teachers involved in the study said they saw positive effects on their teaching practice and professional development, accompanied by a rise in their job satisfaction. Teachers also reported feeling less stressed as a result of spending time outside the classroom and engaging with nature.
The UK is in the top 10% of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, with over 40% of our species in decline. For the next generation to care about, and take action to protect and restore nature, they must first develop a relationship with the natural world around them.
Learning in nature and about nature at school plays an essential role in fostering this relationship.
The People’s Plan for Nature – drawn up by a citizen’s assembly of ordinary people from around the UK in 2023 – set out the public vision for how nature should be protected and renewed in the UK.
The Plan’s vision also calls for nature to be embedded into schools and for all children, regardless of where they live to be able access nature.
The Plan calls for ‘regular time in nature, with knowledge and appreciation of nature built into the school curriculum throughout school life.’
It imagines a future where ‘children at school will be surrounded by nature and wildlife, not concrete yards. Playtime will consist of exploring wildlife and green space, and school trips to clean rivers and seas.’
WWF wants all schools to be supported in allowing pupils to have regular nature experiences as a part of their educational entitlement. This should not be dependent on school phase, type, location or the passion of individual members of staff.
In the Schools for Nature report, the benefits to learners, learning outcomes and to teachers are widely evidenced through research.
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