Exploring the link between Learning for Sustainability and attainment

Funding

Most of the practitioners interviewed did not see Pupil Equity Funding (PEF) as something that could be used to support LfS activities. Primary practitioner 3 school B said that PEF needed to be clearly aligned to how it would be used to raise attainment (e.g. to embed a culture of reading in the school), and that it was necessary to submit information detailing how PEF would be spent. Practitioners reported applying for funding from a variety of non-PEF sources to support specific LfS activities (e.g. Scottish Library Fund). However, some participants did use PEF to support LfS delivery in their schools. Secondary practitioner school J used PEF to purchase LfS related resources, while secondary practitioner school G bid for PEF within his school, which was used for a gardening project. Secondary practitioner school K used PEF for a family project to encourage sustainable cooking. Thus, Pupil Equity Funding has been used to support a variety of LfS activities.

Participants reported that in general, in their schools, PEF was spent on staffing, with a particular focus on learners needing extra support to improve their attainment. Practitioners pointed to a lack of funding for taking pupils out of school for LfS activities, like visiting natural spaces when they are not available locally. This was especially true for schools in lower SIMD areas, where practitioners observed that they did not feel comfortable asking parents to contribute to the cost of field trips. It was also the case for rural schools, for example school E, a small school in a rural area, where the cost per pupil for bus travel was high and distances further.

Participating practitioners in school B did not see LfS as an add-on requiring extra funding. They used reciprocal partnerships with organisations to find creative ways to make small amounts of funding go further. However, they noted that if there more funding was available, they would be better able to take children on LfS related visits and field trips, to engage with partners and the community and to buy project resources. Participants in school A commented that funding would be beneficial to support LfS learning, for example to enable learners to connect with and experience what is going on beyond the school (e.g. to pay for travel to the Scottish Parliament).