The indefatigable Chris Southwood (of learning 2B sustainable) has been writing to the DfE again about a focus on sustainability in schools, and if you're a DfE civil servant, how apt it must be these days to work in Sanctuary Buildings. Below, you can see the response to Chris's question. I'll keep my own comments for another day.
Sent: 31 March 2016 15:06
To: css@learning2bsustainable.co.uk
Subject: Department for Education: 2016-0014326 CRM:0708300
Dear Mrs Southwood
I am writing on behalf of the Minister of State for Schools to thank you for your further email of 16 March about sustainability for schools.
As you know, academies have the freedom to develop their own curriculum but they are required (like all schools) to teach a broad and balanced curriculum. However, the national curriculum provides a benchmark for the essential knowledge which all schools should teach.
For maintained schools the national curriculum forms part of the wider school curriculum. The national curriculum taught from September 2014 focuses on the essential knowledge so that teachers can design a wider school curriculum that best meet the needs of their pupils. Schools have more freedom to teach subjects or topics such as climate change beyond the prescribed curriculum to ensure that children receive a rounded education.
In carrying out the review of the national curriculum, we felt that it was very important to set out the key concepts that we wanted pupils to learn for each subject. As a result we have significantly slimmed down national curriculum which focuses on the essential elements. However, this does not mean that we do not value cross-curricular learning. In setting out the core concepts, we are providing teachers with the flexibility to adapt and deliver the new curriculum as they see fit.
An academised system will mean that the national curriculum will no longer be a decree, but a benchmark. It will serve an important role in setting out the sort of knowledge-based, ambitious, academically rigorous education which every child should experience.
If autonomous academies or multi trust academies (MATs) wish to deliver the national curriculum in their schools, they can do so confidently. However, we also want academies to use their freedoms to innovate and build more stretching and tailored curricula, to meet the particular needs of their pupils or their local area or the particular ethos of the school. Some MATs or academies, for example, will choose to follow a more challenging maths curriculum; others will ensure that every child learns Mandarin on top of other foreign languages.
Further information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-curriculum
The department appreciates you taking the time to share the list of resources which are available to schools to help them develop interesting and stimulating lessons on sustainable development. However, we believe it is far more appropriate for individual schools to decide which materials to use for delivering the contents of the national curriculum, as they are best placed to recognise the learning needs of their pupils.
I hope this information is helpful.
Yours sincerely
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Ministerial and Public Communications Division
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