What is Carbon Literacy® for NHS?
The Carbon Literacy Toolkit for NHS provides NHS organisations with the resources and tools needed to engage their staff in national net zero policy and encourage low carbon actions across the NHS. Our training materials provide the skills and knowledge needed to bridge the gap between climate change policy and climate change action.
Carbon Literacy is for everyone to identify how they can reduce their workplace emissions. From Porters to Receptionists, GPs, Community nurses, Mental Health Practitioners, Social Workers, Surgeons and Senior Directors our training offers are customisable to best suit the needs of your learning group.
The Carbon Literacy for Healthcare Framework inextricably links climate change and human health, highlighting how a healthier planet can lead to a healthier population and therefore less demand for healthcare services.
NHS organisations can access materials to deliver a day’s worth of training for free under our current funding license (active until October 2026). *Certification costs are applicable at £10 per head.
The materials available will allow individuals to host training either online or in-person to run certified Carbon Literacy sessions.
We have multiple course pathways available to best suit a range of individuals working across different healthcare settings.
About the Healthcare Toolkit
Here you’ll find all of the courses within the Carbon Literacy Healthcare Toolkit. To find out more about each course, click on the individual tiles below.
We have a few different course approaches available for training within NHS settings.
Our NHS Elearning Pathway breaks down the course into 2 sections, utilising both asynchronous and synchronous learning styles. Firstly, individuals will need to complete their Carbon Literacy elearning modules. These modules have been developed in partnership with GNHS and ELFHC and can be found on the NHS E-learning hub.
Upon completion learners will need to attend a half-day workshop to finalise their learning and better understand how they are able to take action. This workshop is designed to be hosted at Trust level utilising the training resources within each organisation.
Our Generic Staff Pathway takes a slightly different approach than our other sectoral Toolkits. Due to the many varied working roles of healthcare professionals this course takes a flexible framework approach. The materials are around 75% generic, with 25% being customisable to the job roles of the learners (this is slightly more than in other sectors). This allows training to be delivered to either mixed cohorts of learners or those from different areas of the organisation.
The customisable content consists of editable slides where local examples and case studies can be added. This course is best used in non-clinical office-based settings as this is delivered over a full day of synchronous, live delivery.
Our NHS Leadership Pathway follows a ‘suitable for all’ approach to training. This was developed under the expectation that leadership roles within the NHS should have an understanding and awareness of where changes can be made across their organisation. This course is best used in non-clinical office-based settings as this is delivered over a full day of synchronous, live delivery
The NHS Leadership course focuses on what can be done from a strategic organisational wide approach to reduce emissions.
Ambulances services are now advised to use the generic staff course.
When receiving a Toolkit you will be added to sharepoint folder where the most up to date materials are always kept. The folder contains a slide deck, a comprehensive trainer manual, activity pack and a getting started pack. These are all the resources you need to deliver Carbon Literacy Training.
The Healthcare Toolkit has been designed for usage within all NHS organisations and workplace settings (primary, acute, social and mental health, community and non-clinical settings). Organisations are advised to choose the most suitable pathways for their delivery audience.
If other healthcare providers and services would like to use the materials, then we recommend getting in touch to best understand the options available for you.
This Toolkit has been designed and curated for, the purpose of certified Carbon Literacy training within the National Health Service and approved partner Healthcare organisations. We are only able to guarantee funding for the current license period, meaning the materials are available for free until October 2026.
If you are interested in using our Toolkit but do not fall under NHS as an organisation, then license fees do apply. Get in touch with us directly for quotes on license access, this is done on a sliding organisational scale to ensure fair access for all.
Find out what tools are available to help you bridge the gap between policy and staff engagement.
A helpful support document to help you make the case and pitch Carbon Literacy in your Healthcare organisation.
Find out how Leeds Teaching Hospital Trust (LTHT) became the world's first Carbon Literate Hospital Trust.
GP Matt Sawyer on what delivering Carbon Literacy training using the Healthcare Toolkit looks like.
"There's always an assumption that those of us who work in Sustainability have sustainable living figured out. We don't, we face the same barriers that the average person does - money, time constraints, willpower and, of course, the benefit of convenience! There wasn't really anything I didn't know about included in the Carbon Literacy training, but it raised questions. Developing this training stopped me from excusing myself from taking action! I've made and will continue with some massive personal changes & have further ones in the planning."
Karen Aguilera, Sustainability Officer for North West Ambulance Service
"My team and I found the training really useful and very insightful. In addition to a grounding in the science behind climate change, we learned about how it’s also a health emergency and how we as a Trust contribute to it, along with its implications for us, as an organisation… The training isn’t just theoretical, we also learned about practical, everyday ways in which we can go about meeting those targets."
Craige Richardson, Director of Estates and Facilities at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
"An insightful and comprehensive course for colleagues within the Healthcare sector. The course perfectly deconstructed the 'Why' and the 'How', equipping me with the knowledge and determination to effect the significant decarbonisation of our industry."
Zoe Anderson, Surgical Equipment Specialist at Bausch and Lomb
"You may have heard people who have been through the Carbon Literacy training raving about it... And rightly so! I was sceptical about CL at first. I didn't know if we could pull it off in the time frame, if I could get commitment from our Sustainability Steering Group to attend or even if we would continue rolling out beyond the pilot. To get there we did a lot of research on the health impacts of climate change... SO MUCH RESEARCH. We've had quite the challenge trying to fit so much content relevant to NWAS and the NHS into this training and I'm really excited."
Karen Aguilera, Sustainability Officer for North West Ambulance Service
"The highlight of the course was the opportunity to bounce ideas around with other people and listen to experiences from others in the group. It led to some thought-provoking discussions and ultimately it felt uplifting to know there were other people who were working on these problems too.”
Katherine Smith, Former Junior Doctor
"The actions of individuals can and do make a difference. Learners who have completed a days’ worth of approved Carbon Literacy learning can be certified as Carbon Literate and we believe this training, this deepening of awareness, is a valuable tool in helping us to become a greener organisation."
Libby Sutherland, Environmental Manager at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
"It is no surprise that efforts to reduce the NHS carbon footprint are being driven from the ground up. We know as health professionals that the links between climate change and health are starkly clear, and NHS staff overwhelming support our net zero ambition. This new Carbon Literacy course will enable us to upskill the health and care workforce and continue to deliver high quality healthcare now, and for future generations. It will provide learners with accessible training to improve knowledge and skills on how to implement net zero solutions in their everyday practice, whatever their role."
Nick Watts, Chief Sustainability Officer, NHS England
To request one or more of the available courses for Healthcare, please Contact Us listing ‘Healthcare Toolkit’ as the subject. Please include the following:
If you’d prefer not to use the contact form, please email us at healthcare@carbonliteracy.com
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