Children in England face prolonged “lost learning” caused by extreme heat and flooding at school, according to research on the potential impact of the climate crisis on education.
School leaders and teachers said the scenarios published by the Department for Education made for grim reading and urged ministers to move quickly to improve school resilience.
Under one scenario, by 2050 rising heat levels will cause the equivalent of more than eight days of lost learning as classrooms become too hot for effective teaching, unless adaptations such as improved ventilation are made.
The research also found that more than one in three secondary schools and one in five primaries have a high risk of their buildings being flooded by surface, river or sea water. The study defined high risk as a one in 30 chance of flooding each year.
The DfE summary, based on Met Office and University College London analysis, also said that even temperatures below extreme levels could result in “decreased ability to learn over the course of a typical academic year”.
The summary said: “In the longer term, without the implementation of any adaptation measures, students could potentially lose up to 12 days of learning per year on average, as [the] result of generally warmer temperatures and not just from extreme heat.
“It’s important to recognise that these are averages based on emerging evidence, giving only an indicative indication at this stage.”
Paul Whiteman, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said an immediate priority should be given to rebuilding and refurbishing classrooms and buildings that were not designed to cope with extreme weather.
He said: “Children feeling too hot or too cold in the classroom, or learning in buildings which aren’t equipped to handle drastic weather changes, may be exposed to serious health and safety risks, as well as struggling to focus on their learning.
“Sustaining a safe and nurturing school environment is very difficult without a stable climate. Action and investment is needed by governments both to tackle climate change and support schools to prevent and mitigate the impact of extreme heat and flooding, for example through investment in things like solar panels, improved ventilation and insulation, and measures to ensure buildings are watertight.”
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Daniel Kebede, the National Education Union’s general secretary, said: “These findings make for grim reading, highlighting as they do the threats to learning from extreme weather if our education system doesn’t become more resilient to the impact of climate change.
“Climate change is already upon us and schools need to be able to withstand the effects of extreme heat as well as storms, flooding and water scarcity.”
The study was published as Stephen Morgan, the early education minister, visited Byron primary school in Bradford, which is part of the DfE’s £4.6m resilient schools pilot testing climate adaptations.
A government spokesperson said: “Climate change is a universal issue, and we are taking action to understand the impact on education and prevent disruption to learning. As part of our plan for change, our 10-year infrastructure strategy includes almost £20bn to 2034-35 to rebuild more schools across England – with 250 further schools announced for the school rebuilding programme this week on top of more than 500 already selected. They will be schools for the future, net zero carbon in operation and designed to withstand future climate risks.”