APPENDIX 46A
Memorandum from Waste Watch
INTRODUCTION
1. Waste Watch is a leading NGO, promoting
action on the "3Rs"—waste reduction, reuse and
recycling—as a means of achieving more sustainable resource
use. Waste Watch has over 300 members from a wide cross-section
of local authorities, the community and social economy sector,
business, other agencies and individuals. Waste Watch's expertise
lies in communication, education and information-provision relating
to waste and resource issues. Much of our education work has been
based within the formal education sector, with both primary and
secondary schools.
2. Waste Watch education—Waste Watch
has over 10 years experience of developing and delivering education
projects and since 1994 has worked with 5,500 schools throughout
the UK, through our education outreach programmes Cycler
and Schools Waste Action Club (SWAC). The education projects
Waste Watch delivers result in measurable reductions in waste
for disposal, and active participation by schools, businesses
and local authorities in the debate on issues relating to waste
management, sustainable resource use and consumption. Through
the Waste Education Support Programme (WESP), Waste Watch
also provides training for others to implement high quality waste
education.
3. SWAC provides a structured education
programme for primary and secondary schools, linked directly to
national curriculum requirements. Since 1998 Waste Watch has delivered
SWAC in partnership with local authorities in 10 areas—Essex,
Bexley, Norfolk, Lincolnshire, Stockport, York and North Yorkshire,
Cheshire, Nottinghamshire and Rotherham. SWAC schools achieve
an average rate of waste reduction of 47%, some as high as 90%.
Evaluation consistently indicates the high educational value of
the activities. Over 1,000 schools have now participated in SWAC.
In addition Recycle Western Riverside, a project covering
four west London boroughs, combines SWAC with broader community
education and awareness raising activities.
4. Cycler the Rapping Robot is a
national project delivered by Waste Watch since 1994, and now
seen by over 750,000 pupils. The programme provides an interactive
assembly, delivered by a robot made from reused materials, and
a Waste Watch education officer. The project is tailored to Key
Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 pupils and, links sustainable resource
use issues directly to the requirements of the national curriculum.
Local information and initiatives are integrated into the presentation
to encourage pupils to put the 3R's message into practice at home.
Evaluation forms completed by teachers consistently indicate high
educational value and 100% recommendation to other teachers. To
date this year, the Cycler programme has resulted in 88% of schools
carrying out follow up work, resulting in action to reduce waste
and participation in local and national recycling schemes.
5. Established in 2002, WESP, has provided
a combination of resources, training and support to 30 organisations.
WESP enables exemplar good practice, which has been tried and
tested on the ground by Waste Watch education officers, to be
shared across the country. This fundamentally restricts the "reinventing
the wheel" scenario occurring. Following on from requests
from past WESP delegates and other partners with whom we have
worked with across the country Waste Watch is now developing a
waste education network, to provide ongoing support and experience
sharing.
RESPONSE
1. Has the term Education for Sustainable
Development lost its currency? Does it have any resonance with
the general public? Has the environmental message within it been
lost?
1.1 There is growing concern about this
issue, particularly because the terminology is being used in different
ways by different agencies—for example, the term "sustainable
communities" is now being widely used in a variety of ways
and is increasingly referred to at a local level, sometimes in
place of "sustainable development". We recognise that
sustainable development is a complex term to communicate and it
can also be difficult to prioritise different aspects for action,
but the confusion and variety of interpretation of the term is
having an impact on ESD too.
2. The DfES said in 2003 that the Sustainable
Development Action Plan was supposed to signal the start of a
process of change, identifying the most powerful levers—what
can be achieved immediately and what can be built upon. More than
a year on can it be said that that process of change has begun
and have there been any immediate achievements?
2.1 It is difficult to measure the progress
of the Sustainable Development Action Plan as it has no targets,
timeframe or reporting structure. Those involved in delivery of
ESD cannot easily monitor progress or identify ways of involvement.
No real consultation with the environmental education sector (particularly
NGOs) has taken place and no comprehensive identification of existing
programmes and projects has been undertaken to assess how they
might contribute to a wider framework and the key targets contained
within it. The recognition of the value and contribution of NGOs
in particular needs to be strengthened and a first starting point
would be for DfES to engage with the "third sector"
to discuss potential contributions, funding for the same and to
agree some outputs and potential outcomes which could be delivered
by NGOs.
2.2 The Learning and Skills Council (LSC)
and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) are
both developing strategies for ESD, but there is still an urgent
need for a national strategy for delivery of ESD in schools. Many
different individuals, organisations and sectors are involved
in delivery of ESD and a strategy is needed to enable them to
work more effectively in partnership and towards a common goal.
The DfES action plan does not serve this purpose. An obvious route
in our view would be the integration of sustainable development
more fully into the Healthy Schools Standard, as this provides
an excellent structure within which many groups, both national
and local, can work together. Expansion of the Healthy Schools
Standard would also allow different groups to work towards some
clear targets, both in partnership and individually.
2.3 The proposed DfES web based "sustainable
development; a framework for schools" is welcome in that
it indicates DfES recognises that ESD needs a national and local
support and teacher peer led projects. However in our view it
adds little value to work already developed by the Qualifications
and Curriculum Authority (QCA) and other national and local organisations
and would be better integrated into the existing QCA website.
The proposed DfES website breaks ESD down into "topics",
compartmentalising it rather than encouraging an integrated approach
which embeds ESD into the ethos and across the teaching of the
school. The QCA website provides a more holistic approach centred
on the seven key concepts for ESD (interdependence; citizenship
and stewardship; needs and rights of future generations; diversity;
quality of life; sustainable change; uncertainty), which have
been adopted by many delivering ESD. The duplication of web based
support provision on the DfES and QCA websites, each with a different
approach, adds to confusion for schools and others.
2.4 Attention appears to be focused on web
based support. It is beneficial that the DfES and QCA websites
aim to provide schools with information and easy web access to
the resources available. However web support alone is not enough,
schools want practical help on the ground to implement ESD—see
2.5. The danger of a remote support package shown from experience
from other organisations (eg Eco schools) is that enthusiastic
schools will take advantage of the support however those schools
that are less involved in the implementation of ESD and have less
experience in incorporating the principles into the school will
not be encouraged by a remote service. These schools need sustained
on the ground support to incorporate a whole school approach.
2.5 The proposed DfES website relies on
the help of other organisations to provide resources and projects
which aid the delivery of ESD. This needs to be followed through
by provision of support to organisations who deliver this in local
areas. In our experience schools and teachers want practical help
on the ground to implement ESD. In practice this means ESD specialists
from outside the school or college being able to provide additional
support to hard pressed teachers and tutors—in the form
of training, access to resources, advice, lesson delivery and
monitoring plans. At the end of a three year Schools Waste Action
Club (SWAC) project in York, 1998-2001, Waste Watch asked teachers
to evaluate the project and to indicate what they felt had led
to the success (or failure) of the project within their school.
Among the factors mentioned many indicated that SWAC education
officers are essential to the success of the project and its long-term
sustainability as they provide expert knowledge, which teachers
can not provide or do not have the time to research. Since 2001
North Yorkshire SWAC has worked with 35% of schools in the area.
A survey of all schools in North Yorkshire in September 2004 has
indicated continued high demand for SWAC in the area—74%
of respondents indicated that they would like to work with the
project between April 2005 and March 2007 and 21% that they would
possibly want to work with the project. "The link with Waste
Watch has been a hugely beneficial experience for both me and
the children. The activities were both relevant to our topic and
extremely interesting and the children really enjoyed them."
Class Teacher, Kirby and Great Broughton Primary School, North
Yorkshire.
2.6 BREEAM (environmental assessment method
for new school buildings) has helped increase emphasis on building
environmental features into new school buildings. However there
is very little to support the environmental management of these
once they are established. In particular, schools rebuilt under
PFI contracts adhere to BREEAM, but once built there is nothing
to officially monitor the ongoing environmental performance of
the school.
3. Government is currently reviewing the
UK Sustainable Development Strategy. What should the Strategy
include in order to significantly strengthen the role of learning
within it?
3.1 The revised Sustainable Development
(SD) strategy needs to include new indicators of educational processes,
institutional commitment, and participation in decision-making.
The strategy should include a section on the role to be played
by formal and informal education, including targets and indicators
3.2 We welcome the recognition within the
sustainable development (SD) review, that as a cross cutting concept
SD demands that all parts of government need to lead by example
within policy-making and putting policy into practice. A clear
commitment to ESD is needed from central government, and integration
across departments and other relevant bodies. And, whilst acknowledging
the role of the Sustainable Development Unit (SDU) in co-ordinating
the Framework for Sustainable Development in Government (FSDiG),
Cabinet Office support is really needed to ensure that developments
permeate across all departments including DfES. In a Waste Watch
report on resource use in the public sector (Adding value to
public services: analysis of public sector resource use, Waste
Watch, 2003), we recommended that a regular assessment of the
government's delivery of the FSDiG, either by the EAC or a body
with this level of influence, be carried out going forward. And,
with the public sector accounting for 40% of GDP, central government
alone spending £13 billion per annum on goods and services
and local government an estimated additional £48 billion
a year (Source: Waste & Resources Action Programme presentation
16 November 2004), the power of the sector to both influence sustainable
consumption and procurement developments, influence the supply
chain and lead other parts of society by example, is undeniable.
3.3 To date, SD principles have been more
the preserve of Defra. It is paramount that policies adopted to
further action in SD priority areas originate in the appropriate
parts of government, rather than being directed solely by Defra.
There is a need for DfES to develop a more SD-aware approach to
policies and ESD must be mainstreamed within the DfES. A more
strategic approach and the provision of resources for its delivery
are key in integrating learning into the SD strategy.
3.4 DfES does not appear to have established
with Defra the same kind of inter-departmental relationships as
it has developed in relation to other priorities such as health
(with the Department of Health ie Healthy Schools Standard), international
development (Department for International Development) or travel
(with the Department of Transport—school travel plans).
Regular and robust relationships and combined strategy development
would we believe, be extremely beneficial to the effective planning,
resourcing and development of ESD.
3.5 Involvement in the UN Decade of Education
for Sustainable Development would indicate nationally and internationally
the UK's commitment to sustainable development. This should therefore
be incorporated at a practical level within our schools, colleges
and the informal education sector, across the country to raise
awareness and promote action.
3.6 There also needs to be greater coherence
in the sustainable development strategies produced by different
government departments. In particular, ESD should be clearly linked
to Changing Patterns—The UK government framework for
sustainable consumption and production. Children are not only
the consumers of tomorrow, but research shows that they strongly
influence the purchasing decisions of their families and wield
significant independent spending power. The recent pocket money
survey Shifting Fortunes for the Nation's Children—Wall's
27th Annual Pocket Money Monitor 2001 showed that Britain's
nine million plus children aged between five and 16 have a combined
weekly spending power of approximately £60 million. A recent
BBC Panorama programme estimated that children control over 60%
of household spending decisions. In particular, children increasingly
control expenditure on food as well as their own eating patterns.
It is estimated that in 2002, UK schoolchildren spent £1.3
billion a year on food, with one third of their pocket money—around
£11 million for every school week—being spent on snacks
(Western Mail (Cardiff, Wales) September 18, 2002). Incorporating
SCP into ESD is therefore paramount to ensure the UK government's
Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) framework addresses
all UK consumers.
4. Does the 14-19 Working Group's report,
"14-19 Curriculum and Qualifications Reform", go far
enough? Will ESD be adequately represented if this report is used
as the basis for the forthcoming White Paper? What must be included
in the White Paper if progress is to be made to fully integrate
ESD into all aspects of learning, formal and informal?
4.1 Waste Watch is not aware of any consideration
of ESD in the report, or of the significance of sustainable development
for the reform of the curriculum or qualifications at 14-19.
4.2 The White Paper should explain how its
proposals will enable future citizens to address the challenges
of sustainable development.
5. In response to our last inquiry the DfES
said they recognised that more could be done to embed ESD in the
school curriculum and that they would lead on strengthening ESD
links within geography, design and technology, science and citizenship.
Has there been any discernible improvement in these areas? Is
there evidence that this work has been taken forward by the DfES
and its agencies?
5.1 DfES contracts with subject associations
to produce new or adapted units for the QCA scheme of work are
welcomed. DfES should develop proposals to publish and distribute
the materials to subject specialists in schools and to ensure
that all schools know about them. It is insufficient for all ESD
materials to remain web-based.
5.2 DfES should clarify what it has done
in the past year to ensure that ESD is embedded within the school
curriculum and made a priority that head teachers, governors and
Ofsted recognise. Governments' stated commitment to ESD is welcome,
in particular the inclusion of the statement in the National Curriculum
(1999). However ESD is still not scored at Ofsted level and therefore
neglected as an essential part of curriculum by many head teachers.
For ESD to succeed a much stronger lead and commitment is needed
from DfES.
5.3 DfES should publish the findings of
research into teachers needs contracted to the Geographical Association.
Teachers speaking at a recent WESP training course were very keen
to have outside agencies to help them cross the subject areas
and provide workshops to help deliver good practice and practical
help. They illustrated the success of the additional support provided
by an external expert with a presentation from a school which
had been particularly successful in reducing its waste. Such success
in our view would have been unlikely to have been achieved without
additional resources and support. Working with teachers through
Cycler and SWAC, it is clear they want experts to share tried
and tested good practice with them and help implement change in
schools.
5.4 The Teacher Training Agency (TTA) needs
to be supported to ensure that pre-service providers, include
ESD. Initial Teacher Training needs to formally incorporate ESD
if new teachers are to take it seriously when starting their teaching
careers.
5.5 Continuous Professional Development—school
staff are only able to attend training in areas identified as
individual or school priorities. Few schools or LEAs identify
ESD as a priority within school development plans as DfES does
not encourage them to do so and it is not formally measured by
Ofsted. While this situation remains it is hard for schools to
justify attendance at ESD training.
5.6 Waste Watch ensures that the education
programmes we provide link into the national curriculum and Citizenship
and Healthy Schools are particular areas where schools request
our assistance and expertise.
"We are introducing a whole school PSHE
curriculum following OFSTED observations and SWAC will play a
part in the environmental aspects of the programmes we implement."
Sean Walsh, Holy Trinity Junior School, Ripon, North Yorks.
"Waste Watch was an excellent catalyst to
our litter and recycling initiative. Assemblies by Caty set the
scene and the action planning with the School Council following
the audit provided a very useful framework which we can now build
on throughout the year." The Brunts School, Nottinghamshire.
"The SWAC programme has made our students
and staff more aware of the issues and has given food for thought
for our leadership group. It has also enabled us to move forward
with our `Healthy Schools' initiative in terms of reducing waste."
Deputy Head Teacher, Wensleydale School, Leyburn, North Yorks.
6. The role of informal learning, including
youth work, work-based learning and adult and community learning,
in taking the environmental education agenda forward is key. Is
the Government doing enough in these crucial areas?
6.1 There is little support/incentive for
partnership working between local youth, community and environmental
organisations. Government support is needed at local and regional
government levels. As an environmental NGO, Waste Watch is unusual
in that our activities range from on-the-ground delivery in collaboration
with local authorities to policy analysis and commentary. Through
our on-the-ground work, we have been able to bring added value
to communications and outreach activities. This partnership delivery
approach between local authorities and NGOs is formally recognised
via The Compact but still under-recognised in many areas, but
it is one, to be supported and encouraged more broadly.
6.2 There is a lack of capacity and support
for learning and action related to sustainable development at
community level. Training for community-based workers from the
public and voluntary sectors does not include sustainability,
and support for organisations to deliver sustainability training
is limited. Based upon our on-the-ground delivery, we have seen
that provision of strategic sustainability learning in training
and professional development is needed, to develop capacity among
community-based workers and those decision-makers who affect community
policy at a regional and local level.
6.3 All government funding streams (including
local and regional government grant programmes) for children,
young people and communities should incorporate ESD within their
criteria. The flurry of community funding grants from government
need to be consistent in ensuring a higher priority for SD at
a community level.
7. Is there any evidence to suggest that
the Government, through its stewardship of education, is getting
better at getting the environmental message across to the general
public? And is there any evidence to suggest that sufficient work
is being done at regional and local levels to support environmental
education?
7.1 DfES have not issued any recent guidance
document for schools on environmental education and do not provide
regional support, as they have done with Citizenship, PSHE and
Healthy Schools.
8. Are there sufficient resources available
to deliver the government's commitment to education for sustainable
development?
8.1 Currently there is a severe lack of
funding available for the implementation of strategic ESD projects.
The lack of funding accompanying the DfES action plan for ESD,
means that there is still no strategic funding available for ESD.
Funding has been made available for school travel plans and healthy
schools, through DfES partnerships with Department of Transport
and Department of Health, respectively, but this ignores the many
other aspects of ESD such as sustainable consumption and production,
and the role of NGOs in delivering innovative and good quality
ESD.
8.2 The lack of strategic funding for ESD
prohibits the development of national education action programmes
across the country, instead encouraging small individual actions,
which could be enhanced by a greater support network.
8.3 Waste Watch has been particularly hit
by the reform of the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme, which to date
has made no provision for waste and resources education, or wider
ESD work, either in the formal school environment or in the non-formal
setting. Contrary to the DfES response, paragraph 48 and 49, to
item 13 in the Environmental Audit Committee's report on Education
for Sustainable Development, "Learning the Sustainability
Lesson", elements of ESD are not still fundable through LTCS:
8.3.1 Education has been marginalized within
the LTCS reform. The only remaining category which recognizes
education is DA (biodiversity), and education "can not be
the main intent of the project". To be eligible for the LTCS
community fund a project must be within a 10 mile radius of a
landfill site. This does not allow for national or county wide
education projects and limits a project to working with a very
few schools in a specific area.
8.3.2 To date no element of Defra's Waste
Implementation Programme (WIP) funding, including that administered
by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) makes provision
for schools-based education work. WRAP has clearly stated that
young people are not part of their remit.
8.4 A small number of trusts have environmental
agendas but assume that educational work undertaken in schools
should be funded from statutory sources. A lot of establishments
including schools assume that programmes offered by Waste Watch
are government funded as they are so important and effective.
Trusts which have an education agenda tend to prioritise work
with disadvantaged children, tackling "hard" issues
such as crime or drug misuse. Likewise, current National Lottery
funding (the Big Lottery Fund) focuses on tackling deprivation.
8.5 Defra's Environmental Action Fund (EAF)
is often cited as another possible funding source for ESD. However,
as it only funds up to 50% of a project, and the funding has now
been split between biodiversity and sustainable consumption and
production, it represents a relatively small fund and on its own
it does not provide for sustainable long term funding for ESD.
8.6 Considerable resources are needed to
aid the implementation of ESD projects as schools need the assistance
and expertise of outside agencies. There are numerous education
packs addressing ESD issues and initiatives such as Eco-Schools
which have provided a framework but have been unable to provide
on-the-ground support. Schools are inundated and frustrated by
many of these packs and they often remain unused. There is willingness
among schools, but lack of time and money are often seen as inhibiting
factors and often lead to poor, or no, implementation. However,
through SWAC, Waste Watch has been able to provide on-the-ground
support through Education Officers who work directly with staff
and pupils throughout the life of the project.
8.7 Feedback from schools has indicated
that teachers want outside agencies to come into schools to provide
advice, curriculum linked activities and support in the classroom.
Direct support is key to the success of the projects. However
continuation of these projects in particular is now under threat
due to the recent changes in the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme (LTCS),
through which all our education work (with the exception of WESP),
is currently funded. Secure funding is needed to provide training
and ESD projects, which can provide direct support to schools
on the ground.
8.8 On both a national and local level those
working from the environment perspective (eg DEFRA and local authority
waste departments) think that ESD should be the responsibility
of education whilst education officials (DfES & LEAs) don't
see it as their priority and think that it should be paid for
out of environment funds. This means nobody takes full responsibility
or provides adequate funding and the work goes undone or unfinished.
8.9 Schools now have more individual responsibility
for education budgets. As mentioned in xxx schools do not see
ESD as a priority or an area they might spend money on. There
needs to be provision for providers of ESD to access this funding
in a reliable way. ESD projects tend to require a minimum amount
of work to run but hoping for this on a school by school basis
is too risky for the not for profit sector who do not have funding
to enable them to establish projects and hope they will cover
costs. As schools are given more budget responsibility LEAs have
less funding and ESD is often one of the first things to be cut,
again because it is not seen as a real priority by anyone.
November 2004
| 
