The Royal Meteorological Society (RMetS) welcomes the publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR) report and the Government’s response, which place climate education firmly at the centre of the future curriculum. 

We are particularly pleased to see the explicit recognition of the need to strengthen climate literacy, alongside the related competencies of digital, media, and financial literacy. Together, these skills will help equip learners for careers in industries that support both the limitation of global warming and our adaptation to life in a changing climate. 

At RMetS, we know that learning in every subject has a part to play in developing climate literacy – as evidenced by our Curriculum for Climate Literacy, launched earlier this year. The foundations in science, geography, and citizenship underpin the application of climate understanding across all areas of learning, and we welcome the CAR report’s recognition of this. 

Teachers already recognise the urgency of preparing their students with the knowledge, rich understanding, and skills needed for a sustainable, green economy. This report provides a strong mandate to begin delivering on that vision now, while awaiting implementation of the revised curriculum. 

To realise this ambition, teachers must be supported with professional development opportunities and high-quality classroom and assessment resources. RMetS will continue to play its part – working with educators, curriculum bodies, and partners across the UK to ensure that all young people leave school with the climate literacy they need to thrive in a warming world.