Getting Ready : Your Climate Action Planning Checklist

Whilst I hate to be that person – you can’t deny that August is a good time for school planning – but this works even if you come to it fresh as a daisy in September – where everything feels manageable and new! If you have been meaning to sort out your school’s climate action plan – or refresh the one that has been sitting untouched since last spring – now is the time to do it.

This is a practical checklist for sustainability leads, headteachers, and anyone else who wants to start the new academic year with a clear plan rather than a vague intention. It is not exhaustive and it is not meant to be done in a day. But working through it over the summer will mean September feels like a beginning rather than a scramble.

Work through what you can. Note what needs doing when staff are back. Come back to the rest in October – progress matters more than perfection.

Before you start: three questions for climate action planning

Before diving into the checklist, spend twenty minutes with these three questions. The answers will really help your strategy.

What actually happened last year? (Not what was in the plan) What got done? What did not? Why?
What has changed? New staff? New priorities from leadership? New curriculum guidance? New funding available? What is different this September from last?
What would make the biggest difference this year? Not the longest list – just the most important thing. If you could only do one thing well this year, what would it be?

The checklist

Work through each section at your own pace. Tick what is done, note what needs doing, and flag anything that needs a conversation with someone else before September.

1. Review and reset

Read back through last year’s climate action plan, or write down what the plan actually was if it was never formally documented
Note what was completed, what was started but not finished, and what never happened
Check whether any actions are now out of date, e.g. staff who have left, funding that was not secured, timelines that have passed
Decide what carries forward, what gets dropped, and what needs to be rethought
If you do not have a written plan, commit to creating one before the end of October

2. Leadership and team

Confirm who is in the sustainability leadership group this year
Check whether your named governor for sustainability is still in post and still engaged
Schedule a brief update to senior leadership in the first half term – what happened last year, what the priorities are this year
If you are the sustainability lead and you are doing this alone, identify at least one other person to share the load with this year
Book a sustainability group meeting for the first half term
If you want Carbon Literacy or Climate Fresk training for staff this year, start the conversation now

3. The four areas — a quick audit

Decarbonisation

Do you know your school’s current energy use? If not, pull the last twelve months of bills before September
Is there anything simple that did not happen last year – LED bulbs, timer settings, draught-proofing – that could be scheduled for the first half term?
Is there a funding opportunity worth exploring this year? Note it and assign someone to look into it
Has anything changed in your travel or procurement that needs updating in the plan?

Mitigation and Adaptation

Given this summer’s heat, does your hot weather policy need updating before September?
Are you signed up to UKHSA Heat-Health Alerts? If not, sign up now — it takes five minutes
Is there a flooding or drainage issue that needs reporting to the local authority before winter?
Is eco-anxiety on the radar for staff this year? Plan one staff session or briefing that addresses it

Biodiversity

Walk your school grounds before September and note what has changed over the summer – what has grown, what has arrived, what needs attention
If you have a wildflower area, pond, or growing space, check it is safe and accessible for September
Is there one biodiversity improvement – a bug hotel, a log pile, a wildflower strip – that could happen in the first half term?
Are you registered with the National Education Nature Park? If not, it is free and worth doing

Green Careers and Curriculum

Do a quick mental audit: where does climate content appear in your curriculum this year? Is it joined up or fragmented?
Is there one department that could add a climate connection this year that does not currently have one?
Is your eco group set up and meeting in the first week? Who is the staff lead?
Is there a green careers event, speaker, or activity that could be planned for this year?

4. Communication

Draft a brief paragraph about climate action priorities for the September newsletter to parents – even one short paragraph keeps the community informed
Plan how and when you will update governors on climate action this year, put at least one item on the agenda before Christmas
Think about how pupils will be involved in the plan this year – not just as participants but as contributors to decisions
If you have a school website sustainability page, check it is up to date before September

5. The grounds

Walk the grounds and check anything that needs maintenance before pupils return e.g. pond fencing, wildflower edges, log piles, growing beds
Note anything that could be improved this year and add it to the plan
Is there a grounds maintenance conversation to have with the site manager before September – about mowing schedules, pesticide use, or new planting?
If you have a growing space, is it ready for the new school year? Is someone responsible for it?

6. Training and support

Is Carbon Literacy training planned for any staff this year? If so, book it now
Is Climate Fresk on the agenda for a staff development day or pupil session? Book it in advance
Is there a notyetzero guide that would be useful reading for a new member of staff, a new governor, or a new head?
Book a free initial call with me on notyetzero if you want support with planning, training, or curriculum development — link below

7. The quick wins for September week one

These are the things that take less than an hour and make a real difference to how September feels:

Put the sustainability group meeting in the diary
Email your governor link to one notyetzero resource relevant to their role
Send a one-paragraph welcome back note to the eco group
Walk the grounds and take ten photos – before and after documentation is valuable and easy to forget
Add the CAP review date to the school calendar now, before the year gets busy

If you only do three things this summer

If time is genuinely short, focus on these:

Read back through what you planned last year and note what actually happened. Start September with an accurate picture, not an optimistic one.
A sustainability group meeting, a governor update, and a review date. Three diary entries before September makes the whole year more likely to happen.
Plan one area, one concrete action, with a named person responsible and a date. Done well, it builds momentum. The list can grow from there.

A note on the new academic year

Remember The year is fresh, priorities are being set, and there is a window before the immediate pressures of term take over.

The schools that make progress on climate action are not the ones with the most ambitious plans. They are the ones that review honestly, plan realistically, and keep going when it is difficult. A small, well-executed plan beats a large, untouched one every time.

If you would like support with your climate action plan, Carbon Literacy training, or curriculum development this year, get in touch. The first conversation is free.

————

Book a free initial call with Rebecca at notyetzero to talk through your school’s climate action plan: