Make your school more sustainable

Use this page to explore how you can make your school more sustainable in response to the Climate Emergency.

It’s important that our schools are as energy-efficient as possible. As well as teaching young people how to tackle the Climate Emergency, energy-efficient schools can also see big savings on energy bills by cutting their carbon emissions.

If you’re part of a school in Bath & North East Somerset and are looking to use energy more efficiently, please explore the information below.

Identify energy saving opportunities

We manage a Central Energy Contract for schools. This means that schools pay a fair price for energy and have AMR (Automatic Meter Reading) meters installed on their energy supplies.

AMRs ensure accurate billing and give schools the ability to view their energy consumption online to keep track. This is a good tool for identifying energy-saving opportunities.

If you are interested in joining the Central Energy Contract, you can find more details on the Hub.

Use an energy analysis tool to educate students

Energy Sparks is an online, school-specific energy analysis tool and energy education programme. It supports the primary curriculum, particularly Key Stage 2 maths and science.

Energy Sparks produces easy to read charts showing your energy consumption. It’s a useful tool to educate young people and encourages them to engage with climate issues, offering reward points and badges for reducing energy consumption.

To learn more, please contact Transition Bath and Bath:Hacked via the Energy Sparks website.

Apply for grants and funding

Salix Finance is a suitable funding organisation for schools that are looking to invest in energy efficiency measures.

Get resources, advice and support from organisations

There are several organisations that provide resources, advice and support to help schools make their operations more sustainable:

• Eco-Schools provides a simple framework to guide schools on their sustainable journey, helping to make sustainability an integral part of school life
• The Pod is a resource for teachers and pupils who want to make their school more sustainable. It is designed to support the Eco-Schools programme

Encourage students and staff to travel to and from school more sustainably

If you wish to make your school more sustainable, there are several ways you can encourage students and staff to make sustainable travel choices:

• Avoid single person car journeys where possible
• Encourage staff to carpool, walk or cycle to work. They can also use the Travel West journey planner to help them plan their journey
• Encourage parents and guardians to use the school transport service if it is not reasonable or safe to walk or cycle. Visit our school transport section to get school transport

Manage school waste sustainably

Arrange a free collection and get advice on recycling, composting and food waste by visiting our Schools recycling and rubbish section. You may also want to check our Simpler Recycling page to ensure that your school is compliant with the latest government legislation on waste and recycling.