Learning for Sustainability advice and guidance
Learning for Sustainability (LfS) is relevant to the challenges and issues the world faces now more than ever. It looks at both global and local issues, our use of resources and the impact on the natural world and each other. LfS provides a wide range of contexts for learning for everyone and includes exploring what can be challenging and complicated issues.
Advice and guidance features resources and sources of information to support practitioners with:
- sustainable development education
- taking learners outside
- equality and diversity
- climate change education
- LfS policy and self-evaluation
As our children and young people grow and develop they will enjoy a wide variety of inspirational learning experiences through learning for sustainability.
These experiences will help them to flourish and thrive and will empower them to lead positive change in their communities, society and the wider world.
Let’s build a movement for change to ensure all learners receive their entitlement to learning for sustainability and to help the school and setting become sustainable by 2030.
Learning for sustainability: as we grow and develop video
These examples from schools and settings show how they plan for LfS.
Wallacehall Academy three year LfS plan
Cedarbank School LfS entitlement plan
Kinross High School social studies plan (PDF)
LfS is relevant at all stages of the learner journey. There are a number of pathways and qualifications available.
You can participate in awards as an individual or group. The Welcome Awards Network offers examples of awards that are available.
NPA Climate Change and Sustainability SCQF level 3 and 4 - SQA
FIDA’s International Sustainability Diploma
The Learning for Sustainability (LfS) self-evaluation framework will help you explore where you are on your LfS journey. It will help you to develop a whole-school and community approach to LfS.
The framework has progression built in and links to the HGIOS 4 quality indicators making it easy to link to improvement plans. Challenge questions are provided to spark discussion and help you identify what you are doing well and consider your next steps as a setting.
Additional documents
LfS self-evaluation framework (Word version)
LfS Research briefings on attainment, behaviour and effective pedagogies by Learning for Sustainability Scotland.
Research summary on the impact of LfS on educational outcomes.
Big Picture Thinking: How to educate the whole person for an interconnected world.
Teaching, learning and play in the outdoors: a survey of provision in Scotland in 2022
Learning for sustainability: action plan 2023 to 2030 (gov.scot)
