Government Programmes

Every Child Matters
This substantial and wide-ranging programme is centred round five outcomes that the government plans to achieve for all children. Growing Schools has a role to play in all of these:

• being healthy through understanding healthy eating and nutrition, enjoying outdoor activity and developing emotional maturity through teamwork, challenge and achievement
• staying safe by finding out about risk and how to manage it, through well-managed out-of-school experiences and activities
• enjoying and achieving because learning in the living environment can provide a rich and rewarding experience for all young people whatever their age, ability or circumstances
• making a positive contribution to society as many growing schools activities, such as school gardening, conservation or farm visits help young people to feel integrated with their communities and in touch with the natural environment
• achieving economic wellbeing by discovering that the living environment generates many career opportunities, and that skills such as vegetable growing can provide economic benefits for life
  

Case studies provide examples of schools that have put some of these connections into practice. For more information go to www.everychildmatters.gov.uk

Learning Outside the Classroom

The Learning Outside the Classroom Manifesto states that every young person should experience the world beyond the classroom as an essential part of learning and personal development, whatever their age, ability or circumstances. A very diverse range of locations can be the setting for these experiences, and Growing Schools provides easy access to both sites and teaching resources covering all aspects of learning in the living environment including gardens, farms and nature reserves.

To download a pdf of the Manifesto click here
For more information go to www.lotc.org.uk

 

Healthy Schools

This programme is about creating happier, healthier children who do better in learning and in life. Has four core themes: personal, social and health education (PHSE), healthy eating, physical activity and emotional wellbeing. Growing Schools can particularly help with resources to support healthy eating including a wide range of information about food and farming, growing and cooking your own fruit and vegetables, and understanding such issues as animal welfare, organic systems and food miles.

Sustainable Schools

Sustainable schools aim to prepare young people for a lifetime of sustainable living, through their teaching, their fabric and through the example of their day-to-day practices. Issues that matter to young people, from the state of the local park to global warming, are used as a context for learning across the curriculum so that learning in school is relevant and not abstract or disconnected. The school estate and its local area is used as a learning resource, so that pupils engage with real issues in real places among real people, as a regular part of their learning. Schools are encouraged to start on the path to sustainability through one of eight gateways, and Growing Schools has resources and other information that can particularly help with gateways focussing on Food and drink and Buildings and grounds. A stand-alone Growing Schools project, The Renewable World, provides a range of resources that can contribute to gateways on Energy and water, and Purchasing and waste.

For more information go to www.teachernet.gov.uk/sustainableschools