IKEA and Let’s Go Zero: helping schools tackle climate change

East Barnet Secondary School in London 

Their vision is to transform part of the grounds into an outdoor classroom, allotment, and composting area. They are keen to create an outdoor space for hands-on learning and sustainable projects.

The idea was put forward by students in the school’s environment club, which is named, ‘We Only Have One World’.

The planned outdoor classroom will also serve as a place where pupils can have some quiet time in a more relaxed setting outdoors. 

Fixby Junior Infant School in Huddersfield 

Their wish is to create a shop where items such as seedlings and chicken eggs can be purchased or swapped by families and the local community, helping to reduce food waste and raise funds for the school.  

This schools winning idea was put forward by youngsters in the school’s Forest School – a club which supports outdoor learning for five- to eight-year-olds.

With a thriving allotment, and school chickens which lay eggs used by school catering, they were keen to stop any extra produce from going to waste.  

St Christopher’s C of E High School in Accrington 

This school would like to build a pre-loved uniform swap shop and refill station for cleaning products.

The pre-loved uniform swap shop would provide a space where pre-loved uniforms and prom dresses can be donated and collected, and upcycled while supporting families and helping to change attitudes around pre-loved items.

Meanwhile, the refill station will help reduce plastic usage and costs among families considerably. 

Lochfield Primary School in Paisley 

This school wishes to transform part of the grounds into a community garden with an allotment and composting area. In addition, they would like to create an outdoor space for hands-on learning and projects.

The idea was put forward by students to create a sustainable garden where they can take on seasonal responsibilities, grow produce, and enjoy outdoor lessons whilst learning about sustainability, insects, wildlife, and plants.  

The project will also involve community outreach, offering flowers and produce to retirement homes and food banks, with plans to host an outdoor monthly tearoom in the summer months for elderly members of the community.  

IKEA is working with the Let’s Go Zero campaign, delivered by climate solutions charity Ashden, which aims to help all 32,000 schools in the UK reach zero carbon by 2030. 

At IKEA we want to make living healthy, sustainable lives as easy as possible, not just at home, but in the wider community too – and that includes schools. That’s because schools can play a huge role in educating future generations and empower all young people to take climate action. 

Did you know?

• 83% of children aged 5-16 in the UK want to make changes at school to help combat climate change 
• 65% of children say they feel their school has already implemented some initiatives, but not enough 
• 80% of children want to learn more at school about climate change and over half of them (51%) feel it isn’t covered enough in lessons 
• 87% of children claim that businesses should do more to help families and schools lower their carbon footprint 

_{*Research conducted by Censuswide on 2,000 schoolchildren aged 5-16.}

Our 2022 winners

Last year we received over 100 amazing entries, selecting just a handful of winners was no easy feat, but after a lot of deliberation, we’re happy to share our fantastic four. Through our products, solutions and funds (for the value of £2,000 for each project) we’ve been busy working with the schools to bring these visions to life.

Marsha Smith, Country Deputy Retail Manager at IKEA UK & IE, says: “We were blown away by the number of amazing initiatives submitted by schools across the UK, and it was a challenge to pick just four winners! It’s been inspiring to see how passionate young people are about making a positive difference to our planet.”

“At IKEA, we believe in introducing more sustainable initiatives to create a better future, and hope this competition encourages children of all ages to make small changes that collectively have a big impact. We’re looking forward to working with our other winners to bring their fantastic ideas to life using our products and expertise.”

CTK Emmanuel, Lewisham

CTK Emmanuel in Lewisham is the first school to have their idea built by IKEA co-workers. The “enviro-hub”, which has been designed for the school’s Eco Committee, will offer an exciting new indoor and outdoor educational space for students to enjoy learning about sustainability and the environment. There’s also an outside area dedicated to beekeeping, helping those using the hub to further explore the world, and animals, around them.The first topics on the school’s agenda to delve into include Healthy Living, Global Citizenship and Biodiversity - taking the learning experience to another level, whilst also involving the wider community for learners of all ages and backgrounds.

Engaging younger students, the new fresh and vibrant space will allow the sixth form to welcome primary school children from the surrounding area to use the facilities, as they help build a more eco-conscious community. While a ‘kitchen garden’ in the space provides the opportunity for students to grow herbs and produce that will then be given away to people in the local area. 

Simon Spearman, Head of Centre at CTK Emmanuel has said: “We are so proud of our students for putting sustainability first and coming up with an idea that will benefit pupils for years to come. Involving the wider community in our environmental work is greatly important, and the new “enviro-hub” that IKEA is building for us will enable us to continue to do so.”We’re currently working on building the spaces for our remaining three winners. Look out for the completed projects! 

Beith Primary School, Glasgow

Vast amounts of wearable school uniforms are being thrown away each year in the UK. As a result, Beith Primary school were inspired to create a school culture where everyone is comfortable and confident with reusing and wearing second-hand school clothes. With the new statutory guidance from the Department of Education that schools should ensure arrangements are in place so that second-hand school uniforms are available, their “Uniform Swap Shop” is a dedicated space for parents, children and families to choose second hand school clothes and accessories. The swap shop will also help to reduce car journeys with there being minimal school uniform shops close to the school. 

Oakwell Rise Primary Academy, Sheffield

The “Food Bank Stall & Veggie Growing Area” designed by students at Oakwell Rise Primary Academy will see a new market stall structure providing surplus food from food poverty charity FareShare, and Neighbourly, a platform which helps businesses deliver meaningful and sustainable investment into their local communities. This will help the school reduce its overall carbon footprint by preventing food waste, while also supporting healthy eating choices and reducing food inequality within their school community. 

Charles Williams Primary School, Cardiff

Year 4 students at Charles Williams Primary in Cardiff came up with the idea to extend their outdoor planting and vegetable growing area. The new space will enable all pupils to get involved and engage with nature through growing a range of produce. From preparing the soil, planting the seeds, taking care of the plants and vegetables, and enjoying the delicious, healthy results of their hard work, this new growing space is a great way for the students to learn more about sustainability. 

IKEA UK has joined forces with Let’s Go Zero, a coalition campaign led by climate solution charity Ashden which aims to help all 32,000 schools in the UK reach zero carbon by 2030. 

At IKEA, we share Let’s Go Zero’s belief that children are the most important people in the world and that schools can play a vital role in educating future generations to make sustainable, healthy choices in their lifestyles.  

In line with our ambition of helping the many people live better everyday lives within the limits of the planet, IKEA can inspire and enable healthy and sustainable living in a way that is affordable, convenient and accessible to everyone – not just within the four walls of our homes, but also in all those places that represent an extension of our houses, including neighbourhoods, communities, and now schools. 

The partnership supports IKEA’s long-standing commitment to take climate action, with Science-Based Targets that support our commitment to become climate positive by 2030 and reach net-zero emissions no later than 2050. Collaboration is a key part of our climate positive strategy and we believe that only by working together with business, governments, NGOs and charity partners, customers, co-workers and suppliers, we will be able to bring about positive change. 

Marsha Smith, Deputy Country Retail Manager at IKEA UK & Ireland, said: “At IKEA, we’ve set ambitious goals to guide us on our journey to becoming climate positive by 2030, and radical collaboration is the way forward to deliver meaningful, systemic action. In Ashden, we have found a partner that can help us accelerate our vision of creating a better, healthier and more sustainable life at home for many people – and when we say home, we mean it in its broader sense, to encompass neighbourhoods and communities.” 

Alex Green, Schools Lead at Let’s Go Zero, said: “Schools are key community hubs throughout the country. With 10 million people going through the school gate every day, their role in tackling the climate crisis is pivotal. There is massive untapped potential to accelerate sustainability in education, and we also hope to respond to those young people calling for change and to inspire and educate the whole next generation to make sustainable, healthy choices in their lifestyle. We’re thrilled to join forces with IKEA UK, who is perfectly placed to bridge between action in schools and action in everyone’s communities and homes. IKEA UK has the scale and reach to take this campaign to the next level.”