Southwark Council's Authority to Mandate School Climate Resilience Measures Questioned
Southwark councillors have raised concerns about the council's powers to ensure schools, particularly those managed by multi-academy trusts, are adequately adapting their buildings for climate resilience.
During a meeting of the Environment Scrutiny Commission on Wednesday 14 October 2026, councillors questioned officers on the effectiveness of the council's climate adaptation and resilience strategies. Councillor Catherine Dawkins specifically inquired about the council's authority to compel schools to make necessary building adaptations to cope with extreme weather events.
Officers presented an update on the council's efforts to address climate change impacts, including extreme heat and overheating, flooding, and drought. The council has modelled heat vulnerability across Southwark's schools, identifying that Of the 116 schools assessed, 61 fall in the higher vulnerability tier, 37 in the moderate tier and 18 in the lower tier.
The report notes that high urban heat, deprivation, large pupil numbers and a lack of shade often coincide at the same sites.
The Department for Education estimates that days too hot for learning in some spaces will rise from 1.7 a year now to 2.9 by 2050 and 7.8 by 2100,
and that learning days lost to generally warmer temperatures will rise from 6.7 to 8.2 and then 11.4 over the same period.
The risk is noted to fall hardest on early years and primary pupils, who are physiologically most sensitive to heat, pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, and schools in the most deprived areas.
Councillor Graham Neale sought clarification on how success is measured in climate adaptation and resilience efforts, requesting more specific targets. Officers acknowledged the challenges, particularly around funding and the need for cultural change within the council and among contractors to embed climate considerations into all decision-making.
The council's definition of 'success' for its climate adaptation and resilience efforts is not explicitly stated as a singular definition. However, the report outlines that adaptation is the actions we take to adjust the actual impacts of climate change from the heatwaves, from the floods. But resilience is our overall ability to withstand, respond and to recover from those hazards.
Specific metrics are being developed as part of the Borough Action Plan,
which will serve as the council's overarching strategic delivery framework.
Once adopted, the metrics within the plan will drive delivery and change and align with the Climate Change Strategy and Climate Action Plan.
The council is looking to align new measures and metrics for the Climate Action Plan with the Borough Action Plan, so we don't have competing measures of consistency.
In response to the broader discussion on climate resilience, officers acknowledged that while the council is actively working on adaptation measures, challenges remain, particularly concerning funding and the need for a consistent approach across all council services and external partners. The meeting indicates that a more consistent approach is being developed and implemented through the Borough Action Plan.
Southwark Council is working with schools on climate adaptation measures, including through its Climate Action Schools Network
with over 40 schools signed up. Workshops on decarbonization and climate adaptation have been run, and the council is liaising with schools' asset management colleagues to support pilot projects for measures like cool kits
for care home residents and TRA cool hall projects.
Risk assessments for schools regarding climate data are being developed to support funding bids. The council is also looking at measures like warnings and film on windows and tree planting
as easy wins
for schools. For schools identified as high-risk due to elevated urban heat, large numbers of young or vulnerable pupils, and limited shade, the council has a ranked basis to inform potential prioritization within schools' capital programs, assuming funding is available. This includes measures like shading, tree planting and cooling ventilation.
The meeting mentions that the funding challenges start within schools.
While the council is liaising with our schools asset management colleagues and thinking about how can we support where there is funding available to to pilot some of these these measures,
and has been developing a series of kind of risk assessments for the schools in terms of data; climate risk data so we can support them with funding bids and similar,
it is also stated that adaptation measures adds to that cost.
The overall sentiment suggests a significant funding gap, as the council acknowledges we do need more funding resources to to really support schools in that space.
Public reports pack Wednesday 14-Oct-2026 19.00 Environment Scrutiny Commission.pdf