A huge survey of 1,600 schools in England has just been completed by Eco Schools and Tidy Britain titled "Towards Net Zero: Measuring the Carbon Impact of Schools in England’.  In this it was found that on average staff commuting makes up 12% of the carbon footprint of schools. Under the DfE’s Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy, schools are tasked with a 50% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030. 

To try and meet this target we hold a regular 'Empty Car Park' day where we encourage staff to walk, run, cycle or car share. The aim is to encourage a behaviour shift in staff to consider different ways to get to our school. "The school staff bike shed is regularly full" said Mr Constance. 

On the day there were over a dozen staff who changed their way of coming in to school. The schools Eco club then took a random sample of these teachers and they were given the prize of some fair trade chocolate. The winners were Miss Grogan who regularly walks and car shares, Mr Constance a keen cyclist and car sharer. Mrs Spring Walis who is a keen cyclist and Mrs Kelly who walked in.

While the car park wasn't fully empty it was great to see less cars in the car park. Along with our 5 electric charging stations, it is great to see so many staff thinking about their impact when it comes to getting to school.