- Schools for Nature report published by WWF today finds that UK schoolchildren are missing out on the benefits of connecting with nature, with only 24% of schools providing daily opportunities to experience nature.
- Embedding nature into the curriculum and creating nature-friendly schoolgrounds can mitigate mental health impacts while helping educational achievement.
- Report also reveals ‘nature gap’ between schools in wealthier areas and those in more deprived areas.
- WWF wants all schools to be supported in allowing pupils to have regular nature experiences as a part of their educational entitlement.
As children go back to school after the summer holidays, a new report [1], published today 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 well-being 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.
