Green schools for ecotowns

Hot on the heels of the announcement of tougher targets for schools' carbon emissions, government has said that the country's planned ecotowns will be among the first communities to showcase zero carbon schools.


The Department for Children, Schools and Families is stumping up around 5% of the £60m funding announced for the first wave of ecotowns this week.

The four communities, all in the south of England, will each house a zero carbon school to demonstrate what can be achieved in this area.

Schools Secretary Ed Balls recently announced that schools would need to reduce their carbon emissions by 80% by 2013 – 20% more than under previous targets.

He also said that each of the UK’s regions would be expected to have at least four zero-carbon schools by 2016.

Schools Minister Vernon Coaker said on Monday: “As the world faces ever greater challenges in tackling climate change, schools are a crucial part of our national effort towards a lower energy and greener Britain.

“With schools contributing around two per cent towards the UK’s carbon footprint, we have a moral responsibility to reduce this and so last week we announced our plans to help schools be greener.

“Our £2.5 million of funding towards the eco-towns project will help set us on this road to new zero carbon schools and for reduced carbon emissions from existing schools with pilot projects in these areas.”

“Our children deserve not only the best learning environments, but sustainable ones to protect the planet for their future and that of generations to come. The top supporters of these efforts are the young people themselves.”

Sam Bond

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