{"id":633975,"date":"2026-06-12T00:23:08","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T00:23:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/633975\/"},"modified":"2026-06-12T00:23:08","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T00:23:08","slug":"natural-history-gcse-to-teach-teenagers-to-plant-wildflower-friendly-gardens-gcses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/633975\/","title":{"rendered":"Natural history GCSE to teach teenagers to plant wildflower-friendly gardens | GCSEs"},"content":{"rendered":"

School pupils will learn how to plant a wildflower-friendly garden, according to long-awaited plans announced on Thursday for a natural history GCSE in England, Wales and Northern Ireland<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Campaigners have for more than a decade called for the study of biodiversity loss and global heating to be introduced as a dedicated subject in classrooms across the country, but despite a curriculum being previously drawn up, its launch has faced repeated delays<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The government has published a consultation on the curriculum for the GCSE, with plans for students to study three core areas: habitats and wildlife in the UK; human influence on the natural world; and a study of climate breakdown, biodiversity loss and conservation.<\/p>\n

The naturalist, explorer, presenter and writer Steve Backshall said that with this generation expected to confront some of the \u201cbiggest challenges humanity has ever faced\u201d, the qualification would give them the knowledge and tools to \u201cnot just understand those challenges, but to be part of the solution\u201d.<\/p>\n

The subject content will also examine human influences on the natural world, such as fishing and deforestation, and explore how everyday actions, from creating wildlife-friendly gardens to reducing the mowing of roadside verges, can support biodiversity.<\/p>\n

A key part of the GCSE will include dedicated time outside, with teachers required to include at least 20 hours of fieldwork as part of the course.<\/p>\n

Access to green space for school pupils is far from equal<\/a>. However, the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said the fieldwork could take place on school grounds or in a park.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want this to be a GCSE that is accessible and available to the widest range of young people, not something that is driven by whether people can afford expensive trips a considerable distance away,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Stephanie Holt, the UK biodiversity training manager at the Natural History Museum, which has been working with the government to draw up the proposed curriculum, said that by focusing on hours spent outside rather than days, it would enable teachers and pupils to focus on the \u201cspecies that are around you\u201d.<\/p>\n

It was about \u201cinspiring curiosity on your doorstep, literally no matter where that doorstep is\u201d, she said.<\/p>\n

Phillipson said the GCSE would complement existing subjects such as biodiversity and geography, and that one of the \u201cbiggest changes\u201d would be the extent to which young people were able to spend time getting practical skills.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about bringing their classroom-based knowledge out into their community to really see how that works in a very hands-on way,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Doug Gurr, the director of the Natural History Museum, said the GCSE would provide a \u201cmore accessible\u201d way of learning by moving away from books.<\/p>\n

\u201cBook learning is important, but it\u2019s not for everybody,\u201d he said. \u201cWe need people to do stuff as well as read books.\u201d<\/p>\n

The government has repeatedly been accused of attacking the value of the natural world, with the prime minister, Keir Starmer, and the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, repeatedly positioning<\/a> nature as a blocker to economic growth.<\/p>\n

Phillipson maintained that growth was not in conflict with the natural environment and said the GCSE would \u201csupport young people to explore their interest and curiosity in the natural world\u201d.<\/p>\n

The government plans for natural history to be first taught in schools at the same time as the teaching of the revised GCSEs after the recent curriculum and assessment review<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"School pupils will learn how to plant a wildflower-friendly garden, according to long-awaited plans announced on Thursday for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":633976,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[1397,90,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-633975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-environment","tag-environment","tag-science","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/633975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=633975"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/633975\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/633976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=633975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=633975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=633975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}