Young children are natural environmentalists. They will crouch over a woodlouse for ten minutes, jump in every puddle and remember exactly which pot the sunflower seed went in. This sustainability early years course shows your team how to build on that instinct while cutting waste, energy and water use around the building, so the money saved goes back to the children.
It is practical from start to finish. Most of what it covers costs nothing to start, and it works in a large nursery, a pack-away pre-school or a childminder’s home.
Why sustainability matters in the early years
Sustainability in an early years setting is a triple win. Children get richer learning, a stretched budget stops leaking money through half-used resources and radiators heating empty rooms, and families gain easy ways to get involved. Done well, it looks like ordinary good practice done deliberately: time outdoors in all seasons, re-using and repairing, wasting less, and growing things.
It also sits naturally inside the EYFS. Understanding the World asks practitioners to help children explore the natural world, notice similarities and differences, and understand how to care for living things. The course shows how the same everyday projects feed the prime areas too, and how to describe them in your curriculum story so children can explain, in their own words, what they do and why.
What’s in the course
- Why sustainability belongs in early yearsThe triple win for children, budgets and community, and the “love first, worry never” principle.
- Children as eco-citizensSeasons, minibeasts, weather, growing and birds, and weekly nature rituals that build attachment.
- Reducing waste: resources, food and plasticA one-week waste audit, re-use and donation cycles, food waste within hygiene rules, and plastic swaps.
- Energy, water and easy wins around your buildingLighting, heating, water and washing, switch-off monitors and a five-point close-down routine.
- Growing, composting and projects children can ownFast crops for impatient gardeners, composting and wormeries, bug hotels and winter bird feeding.
- Embedding it: policy, parents and your curriculum storyA one-page policy, an eco-committee with children on it, and involving families without preaching.
- Assessment10 questions. Pass mark 80%. Resit as many times as you need.
What you’ll learn
- Why under-fives need wonder and care, never fear, guilt or “doom” framing, and how to respond calmly if a child raises something worrying
- How to run a one-week waste audit and pick one action for each of your five most-thrown-away items
- How scrap stores, donation requests, a mending basket and a uniform swap rail make provision richer and cheaper
- How to cut food waste through realistic portions and self-serving, always within your food-hygiene and allergen procedures
- The fastest energy wins: LED bulbs, draught-proofing, heating timers matched to your hours, and radiators kept clear
- How to set up children as switch-off monitors with a badge and a picture checklist
- Which crops reward impatient gardeners, from cress and radishes to potatoes in a bucket, and the simple compost sorting rule
- How to write a one-page sustainability policy under four headings and name a lead
Who this course is for
- Practitioners who want to bring more nature, growing and outdoor time into everyday practice
- Managers looking for practical ways to reduce waste and running costs
- Staff taking on the role of sustainability lead or setting up an eco-committee
- Childminders and pack-away pre-schools who want to start small with little space
How it works
- OnlineStudy on any device and pick up where you left off.
- 6 short lessonsAbout 45 minutes in total.
- 10-question assessmentPass mark 80%. Resit as many times as you need.
- CertificateIssued when you pass. NFAQ accredited.
Training your team
Sustainability sticks when it survives staff changes, so it helps if the whole team shares the same habits and language. Choose the number of learners at checkout, with group rates from 3 learners, or get it as part of the Training Portal for £5 per learner per month. It pairs well with Loose Parts Play and Outdoor Play in Early Years.
Frequently asked questions
Do we need a garden to do this?
No. Every crop in the course grows in pots, grow-bags, window boxes or builder’s buckets by the door. A windowsill of cress and a bird feeder is a real start.
Should we talk to children about climate change?
The course advises against it. Under-fives cannot act on faraway problems, and frightening talk produces anxiety rather than action. Keep the language small and positive, such as “we look after our garden”, and steer worried children back to what they can see and do today.
Will it actually save us money?
Many of the changes are cheap one-off fixes or simple habits: LED bulbs, draught strips, heating timers matched to your hours, full washing loads and a close-down routine. The course encourages you to frame every saving as money freed for the children.
Do we need to join an eco award scheme?
No. Accreditation schemes exist if you want external structure, but they are entirely optional. The practice in the course stands on its own.
What happens if I don’t pass the assessment?
You can resit it as many times as you need until you pass. Your certificate is issued as soon as you reach the 80% pass mark.
Will this help at Ofsted?
Ofsted does not approve training providers, and the certificate is evidence that the training was completed. The course shows how sustainability threads through your curriculum story, and the strongest evidence is children talking naturally about the habits they practise every day.
