Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that all children are aware of climate change.

It is important that young people are taught about climate change. Topics related to this are included in both the science and geography curriculum and qualifications.

In primary school science pupils are taught about how weather changes across the four seasons, and look at how environments can change as a result of human actions. In secondary science pupils are taught about the production of carbon dioxide by human activity and the effect this has on the climate. This is expanded on in GCSE science where pupils will consider the evidence for additional anthropogenic causes of climate change. As part of GCSE geography pupils will look at the causes, consequences of and responses to extreme weather conditions and natural weather hazards.

In 2017, the Department also introduced a new environmental science A level. This will enable students to study topics that will support their understanding of climate change and how it can be tackled.