This paper has been drafted to ignite the discussion about nature education spaces across Oxford. We would love to hear your thoughts about this idea. Please use the form below or email us at kim@oxfordearthacademy.org.

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Green Spaces for Skills for the Economy

Enhancing employment skills and resilience in Oxfordshire Youth

17th July 2025 | DRAFT

Dr Kim Polgreen* and Dr Evelyn Sanderson**

*Director, Oxford Earth Academy; Chair, Low Carbon Oxford North; Honorary Fellow at the Oxford University Department of Education; Community Outreach Officer for the Leverhulme Centre for Nature Recovery.

** Associate, Oxford Earth Academy, Co-founder Oxfordshire Doughnut Economics Collective, Former General Practitioner

Context

A new vision for innovation-led growth of Oxfordshire’s economy is set out in Oxford University’s Strategy for Innovation[i], Engagement and impact[ii] and supported by Oxford City Council’s new Local Plan[iii] and vision for Greater Oxford[iv], Oxfordshire County Council’s Innovation Framework for Planning and Development[v] and a new Oxford Growth Commission.[vi]

Oxfordshire’s growth economy will need employees with a range of technical and soft skills as recognised by the Government’s Plan for Change [vii] and informed by the Government’s Future of Childhood and Adolescence Project[viii]:

“Improving childhood underpins the successful delivery of the Government’s Plan for Change. The project will help policymakers see the opportunities and challenges in education, health, technology, justice and other areas that impact the lives of children. It will build positive visions of the future to help guide decision-makers towards building the best possible outcomes for future generations.”

Nature Based education can provide these skills and Oxfordshire, with its abundance of green assets and educational excellence, is ideally placed to pioneer this approach.

Nature Based Education

Nature Based Education (NBE) - education in and about the natural world and the human partnership with nature – as exemplified by the National Education Nature Park [ix] is particularly effective in building knowledge, skills and resilience in young people[x].

1. Soft skills for business and organisations, and societal resilience

Business organisations report that new entrants to the workplace often lack skills in communication, teamwork, problem solving, critical thinking and personal resilience. Whilst technical skills can be learned on the job, teaching soft skills in the workplace can be difficult and time consuming. At the same time these skills are vital to societal resilience in the face of climate change and other emergencies[xi]. NBE during school years is particularly effective in building these skills.

2. Eco-literacy across all sectors, and green sector expertise

A rapidly growing “green sector” along with the need for all businesses and organisations to green their operations and supply chains require appropriate expertise and eco-literacy. Young people in turn, are attracted to careers in sustainability but are unsure how to gain the right knowledge and skills[xii]. Experiential learning of the natural world, on which society the economy depend, provides a deep understanding of these interrelated systems, supporting problem solving and innovation.

3. Widening the talent pool

The economy needs a wide pool of people with a range of talents and innovative approaches to business challenges. While many students do well in mainstream education, others flourish in non traditional educational settings with opportunities to learn outside in nature.

4. Self-management of mental health and wellbeing

The mental health crisis in children and young people is spilling over into the workplace: one in three young people aged 18 – 34 reports mental ill-health[xiii]. The mental health and education sectors are struggling to cope with long waiting lists and high levels of absence in schools.

Time in nature improves general mental health and wellbeing [xiv] and eco-anxiety[xv]. Recognising these benefits, Oxford Health are pioneering nature-based intervention at all stages of their mental health provision. NBE in schools gives students the opportunities and skills to use their local green spaces for their own mental health and wellbeing.

5. Confidence through societal participation

Young people of secondary school age can find it hard to see themselves as part of the wider community[xvi]. Adults often misunderstand, fear or disrespect them[xvii]. In addition, there is a lack of provision for them in the public sphere and where spaces for teenagers do exist, they are not generally biodiverse green spaces. [xviii]

Engaging children and young people in learning in and about their local green spaces early in their lives and teaching them how to study and look to after them alongside members of the community, offers a huge opportunity to give them pride and ownership of their local spaces, a sense of belonging and a role in their community that underpins all aspects of our society.

Oxford Education Nature Park

Why start in Oxford?

A city world renowned for education and innovation, Oxford is ideally placed to pioneer excellence and grow a dedicated network for education in nature, optimising outcomes for Oxford’s children and young people, green infrastructure and economy.

1. Biodiverse green spaces

Centred on a confluence of rivers, the city has a myriad of diverse green spaces, many of them more biodiverse than the surrounding countryside.

2. Density of schools, colleges and universities

The city has the highest density of education at all levels and access to the resources of 2 universities.

3. High levels of inequality

Oxford is the 2nd most unequal city in the UK with high rates of child poverty. NBE would improve the wellbeing and opportunities for Oxford’s young people and address the unequal access to local green spaces[xix]) helping to mitigate the long-term impacts of inequality on growth and prosperity[xx]

How would this work?

An Oxford Education Nature Park (OENP) would provide outdoor learning in a locally accessible, connected and resilient network of varied green spaces across the city,

1. Locally accessible green spaces

The National Education Nature Park[xxi] on school grounds is a fantastic initiative, but many schools do not yet have much biodiversity or lack adequate space for learning in nature. Accessing distant nature sites is difficult and infrequent with the increasing costs of transport and pressures on teacher time.

Nature sites within easy walking distance of schools bring many benefits: more frequent visits in different seasons, the ability to study and measuring results of interventions and to develop a meaningful connection with and sense of belonging in local natural places.

2. Connected and resilient biodiversity

Spaces with a diverse range of natural features result in greater benefits in wellbeing[xxii] and offer greater the learning opportunities. Biodiversity of this patchwork of small urban green spaces requires connectivity between to boost resilience to climate chaos and the impact of footfall.

3. Variety of student provision

A range of habitat types provides knowledge of a diversity of ecosystems and their different requirements. Different types of spaces allow provision for a range of students: with dedicated safe spaces appropriate for primary age children and students with special needs and larger spaces for teenagers to explore and provide a physical challenge.

Conclusion

Nature Based Education, by combining the County’s wealth of natural and educational resources, offers multiple benefits to young people, their communities and the natural environment, and underpins the skills for Oxfordshire’s future economic success.

There is urgency in ensuring that NBE is factored in to Oxford’s the key green infrastructure in Oxford’s 2042 Local Plan (consultation closes 8th August 2025) , included in Oxfordshire’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy (due to be released Nov 2025) and integral to the relevant workstreams (September 2025) being set up prior to the launch of the Oxfordshire Strategic Innovation Taskforce (Nov 2025).