A critical priority for education estates by Amanda Williams, Head of Environmental Sustainability, Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB)
Climate risk has the potential to affect every aspect of academic life and must no longer be viewed as a future concern, but as an immediate priority for the education sector. In response, enabling industries - particularly the built environment and construction sectors - must step up to provide solutions, collaborate effectively, and offer meaningful support.
The publication of the UK Climate Change Committee’s “A Well Adapted UK” report in May signalled a stark warning of a future defined by overheating buildings, floods and drought. The message was clear: the UK has largely been designed, planned and built for a climate that no longer exists, and this will have serious implications for educational institutions and other public services.
Schools were highlighted as being particularly vulnerable to overheating, with the CCC report noting “children in nurseries and schools” require greater protection from rising temperatures. Many UK buildings - including a large proportion of education facilities - were not designed for the hotter climate we can expect to experience. This means classrooms, halls, labs and student housing will face growing heat stress, undermining learning conditions, health and safety, and day-to-day use.
The CIOB was pleased the report recognised the UK remains underprepared for the impacts of a changing climate, from excessive heat to extreme storms. Without legislation and incentives to ensure buildings are protected from overheating, and resilient to flooding and abnormal weather, the risks to human health and productivity will only grow.
We called on The Government to take the findings of the Climate Change Committee report seriously and listen to experts from across the construction sector and client organisations such as education institutions, who will ultimately be responsible for delivering the resilient infrastructure and buildings it highlights.
This is a topic we have been putting at the top of our agenda in 2026, because we recognise the role our industry must play in future-proofing communities against the accelerating impacts of climate change.
As extreme weather events like intense heatwaves, floods, and storms increase in frequency and severity, the built environment faces unprecedented risks that threaten structural integrity, operational continuity, and public safety. Given buildings generally have a lifespan exceeding 60 years, current construction and renovation projects must be designed to withstand future climate scenarios, not historic norms.
Embedding resilience into every stage of planning and construction is essential to manage risk, enhance occupant wellbeing, and maintain vital infrastructure in a rapidly changing world. But extreme weather also has an impact on construction operations and supply chains as well.
Climate impacts are already disrupting daily life and services, and the risks are substantial; heatwaves above 40°C becoming increasingly common by mid-century; flood risks rising; water shortages increasing in regularity and severity; and climate impacts costing the UK economy up to £260bn annually by 2050, without action at scale and pace now, according to the CCC report.
According to the Association of University Directors of Estates (AUDE), universities (particularly those with heritage buildings) are already experiencing a variety of climate related challenges, including storm damage to buildings and critical infrastructure, overwhelmed drainage systems, flooding and weather-related disruption, travel disruption, and challenges maintaining green spaces.
Other education settings across the UK will not be immune to these escalating climate risks which will directly impact on nurseries, schools, colleges and university campuses, and student accommodation, and without urgent adaptation, impacts will intensify sharply by 2050.
For universities, colleges and schools this means upgrading estates for heat resilience, embedding climate adaptation in capital programmes, and rethinking building standards and campus design. Like other public services, they must urgently adapt to heat, flooding, and water stress.
In practical terms, this means upgrading buildings for thermal comfort and resilience, managing flood and water risks, and ensuring continuity of education during extreme weather, with implementation of adaptation plans (not just strategies).
There is an urgent need to adapt public service buildings including education estates with investment in passive cooling and natural ventilation, insulation, shading, and green infrastructure. In addition to retrofitting buildings to cope with heat and designing new buildings for future climates rather than historic norms, education establishments will also need extreme heat guidance for students and staff, as well as updated adverse weather plans.
Flood risk management will also be critical for education infrastructure, with many campuses vulnerable to flooding, which could disrupt teaching continuity, exams, access and transport. Institutions need robust resilience planning (e.g. drainage, location planning, contingency teaching) and must consider a range of adaptation measures suitable for the context. This includes sustainable drainage systems like permeable surfaces, rain gardens, swales, ponds and wetlands, as well as retention and detention basins, attenuation tanks, flood protection barriers, and protection for critical equipment. Those situated in coastal regions will need to consider appropriate additional adaptation measures.
Other hazards are likely to include prolonged periods of water shortage and increased wildfire risk, making water efficiency paramount, with adaptation measures such as developing landscaping that incorporates native and drought-tolerant plants with low flammability, rainwater harvesting and smart irrigation, as well as early warning systems.
At CIOB, we are concerned that adaptation is lagging across all sectors, with insufficient action being taken at pace and scale to adapt the built environment. In the education sector, which has already faced funding cuts, teacher shortages, educational inequalities, and the long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, this must only be compounded.
One CIOB member told me adaptation efforts across estates, operations, and governance in higher education are generally uneven, evolving too slowly, and there remains a gap between increased awareness of climate risks and actual delivery of resilience measures.
Educational institutions are not alone. As the CCC report highlights, the UK is “ill-prepared” for current climate extremes, and we are increasingly hearing from members and other stakeholders that existing plans are not keeping pace with risks.
Addressing this will require system-wide action across Government and the public services, infrastructure operators and the private sector. This must include the built environment industry and construction sector working in partnership with clients such as education institutions.
The good news is that help is at hand. The CIOB recognises our members and the wider industry need support in understanding their roles in relation to climate resilience. We recently published a new Technical Information Sheet on Climate Resilience & Adaptation in the Built Environment, which can be downloaded from the CIOB Academy. Additionally, we will be making climate resilience and adaptation the theme of our annual international Sustainability Conference on Wednesday 14 October 2026 and are looking for practitioners to join panel discussions and share real world case studies. Our free to download Client Guide also has a section on the wider topic of sustainability.
The UK Climate Resilience Roadmap, published by the UK Green Building Council, sets out a vision for a climate resilient built environment, sharing clear recommendations and next steps needed to increase the climate resilience of our built environment.
Another valuable education-specific resource is the AUDE Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience Guide for UK universities, published in August 2025, and designed to help estates teams understand and respond to climate risks. It explains how climate change is already affecting university estates (e.g., through evolving hazards and environmental pressures) and sets out a structured approach to action supported by case studies. It emphasises integrating climate adaptation into institutional strategy and business continuity planning, then developing practical, evidence-based adaptation plans informed by stakeholder engagement and climate data. Overall, the guide aims to both inform and inspire universities to take proactive, coordinated action to improve resilience, supported by real-world examples and sector insights.
Of course, in addition to preparing their estates for the impacts of climate change, universities have a vital research and innovation role to play, with academic teams investigating local and global climate impacts, developing and testing adaptation measures, and sharing findings with policymakers and industry.
The built environment industry can support with real world testing, scaled deployment and commercial funding, and work in partnership through mechanisms such as knowledge transfer partnerships.
It strikes me that the role of collaboration cannot be under-estimated if we are to meet the challenge set out in the CCC report, and I was inspired to hear recently of academic and industry members of the CIOB’s own Sustainability Advisory Panel coming together to explore how we can utilise high solar reflective index roofing membranes to combat the increased risk of overheating in UK buildings and cities via the urban heat island effect.
Education institutions are major estate owners, critical public service providers and drivers of research and innovation on climate action putting them at the centre of society’s response to this issue and built environment professionals must work with them on solutions.