Between 2024 and 2025, InterClimate Network partnered with 43 schools and colleges to run our Climate Action Survey, gathering insights from just over 11,000 young people aged 11 to 18 across England. In 2026, we ran an updated survey with two further schools, gathering an additional 763 responses.

This is one of the largest evidence bases in the UK on how climate change is affecting young people’s day-to-day lives, education and wellbeing – filling a significant gap in current research.

Insights are outlined in four reports, with accompanying Excel data also available.

The aim is that this research is used to:

  • Equip schools, local authorities and national government with the insight to develop climate adaptation and mitigation policies and interventions that better reflect young people’s lived experiences, priorities and solutions.
  • Build young people’s confidence, sense of agency and the practical skills they need to adapt to and mitigate climate change, by giving them a genuine voice in the research and its outcomes, and a sense of empowerment from being heard and seeing action as a result.
  • Help address the values-perception gap. This is the tendency to underestimate how many other people care about climate change and are willing to act. Showing what young people are doing and making this ‘silent majority’ more visible can help normalise climate action, strengthen social norms, and encourage greater participation.

Reports – coming soon

Dive into the data

Look at the data behind our findings, including research questions, comparisons and wider evidence:

Put these insights into practice

Whether you’re developing a new climate initiative or refining how you talk about climate action, ICN’s free resources can help you turn insight into action.

Campaigns for Action
Identify the barriers stopping people from acting, and explores behaviour change techniques with real examples of how to build them into more effective campaigns.

Communicating Climate
Practical guidance on how to talk about climate issues in ways that connect with young people.

The team & our thanks

Project team
Cecily Etherington (Project Lead), Michila Critchley, Ben Carroll, Makayla Murphy, John Hall

Get in touch
For further information about our research please contact cecily.etherington@interclimatenetwork.uk

With thanks to

Schools & students
All participating schools, students and teachers, whose strong participation and high response rates demonstrate their commitment to understanding and acting on the climate crisis.

Design
Sam Auden, Design and Tonic, for bringing her expertise to making complex research accessible and engaging.

Expert contributors
Loz Hennessy; Rachel Manning, Climate Outreach; Jess Newberry Le Vay; University of Oxford Climate Cares, for their valuable expertise and insight in developing the report’s key findings.

Funders
The Southall Trust, for funding these insights reports.
Benefact Group Movement for Good, for funding the Climate Action Surveys 2023–2025.

Using the data 

These are open-access research reports distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.