Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to improve the heat resilience of the school estate.

The department takes periods of hot weather and heatwaves seriously and has published a climate risk assessment which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impact-of-uk-climate-change-risk-on-the-delivery-of-education/summary-of-findings-in-relation-to-3-climate-risks-overheating-flooding-and-water-scarcity.

The department is improving infrastructure and strengthening resilience across the education estate through our Education Estates Strategy which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/education-estates-strategy

This includes a new £710 million Renewal and Retrofit Programme to improve condition and climate resilience; investment of almost £3 billion per year by 2034/35 in capital maintenance to improve the condition of the school and college estate; and investment of almost £20 billion through to 2034/35 in the School Rebuilding Programme, delivering climate‑resilient buildings at over 750 schools.

The department has recently updated its design standards, covering overheating risk assessments which account for rising temperatures associated with climate change, as well as external shading and cross ventilation. These standards can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/design-standards-employers-requirements.

The department’s improve and renew guidance also outlines measures that could be implemented to mitigate overheating. This guidance can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/improve-and-renew-developing-your-long-term-estates-plan/improve-and-renew-your-long-term-estates-plan.

The department is also developing its objectives as part of the fourth National Adaptation Programme, due in 2028.​