Take part in Nature Discovery Week
What's living and growing on your school grounds? Nature Discovery Week (Monday 29 June - Friday 3 July 2026) is the perfect opportunity to find out together!
Head outside with your class and explore with one or more of the National Education Nature Park's nature surveys. Count pollinators, record grassland plants or observe species with iNaturalist. Every observation your learners make builds a national picture of nature across school grounds, which until now has been a bit of a mystery. This picture is vital information — it allows you to make the most of your outdoor space by making evidence-based decisions, while working with Natural History Museum scientists to conduct groundbreaking research into nature recovery.
Plus, this isn't a one-off. You can do the same surveys year after year and watch the story unfold, seeing first-hand how your efforts through the Nature Park are transforming local wildlife, and tracking your setting's impact alongside schools across England.
Nature Discovery Week is a chance to be part of something bigger. Together, schools, nurseries and colleges across England have the power to make a real, measurable difference to our planet, and it all starts with stepping outside. We've also got some special digital badges you can download for each survey that you do during the week!
How to take part
Nature Park Map
To see the survey data on the Nature Park Map, click on 'Add layer' and select 'Pollinator Count', 'Grassland Plant Survey', or 'iNaturalist observations'. Find out more about the Nature Park Map.
Hot weather: Activities and resources when you can't get outside
We realise the extreme temperatures may impact your outdoor plans. Although temperatures are set to cool during Nature Discovery Week, below are some suggestions of how to use time indoors to prepare learners for the nature surveys so they are ready to jump right in when temperatures come down!
- The Grassland Plant Survey comes with lots of resources to prepare learners with background information about plant identification and grasslands, including images of example grassy patches for KS2 and KS4 to practise doing the survey with
- If learners can pick up some leaves earlier in the day or on their journey in, they can be used with our Leaf vocabulary and Botanical vocabulary resources
- This is also a great time to review your habitat map, to make sure everything is complete so it can be included in the Nature Park research
Taken part in Nature Discovery Week? Start transforming your outdoor spaces with the Nature Park
The National Education Nature Park is a free programme that embeds nature and climate education across the curriculum, as young people lead the way in transforming their school, nursery and college outdoor spaces into nature-rich havens to benefit both people and the planet.
From creating wildflower meadows and digging ponds to building green walls and growing vegetables, children and young people are taking real action for local wildlife while developing vital skills, knowledge and a lasting connection with the natural world.
Every action adds up to make a big impact. More than 9,250 education settings have joined so far, and with the area of primary and secondary schools in England alone adding up to an area roughly twice the size of Birmingham, school, nursery and college grounds have enormous potential. Are you ready to join them?
Get a badge for taking part
Download a special digital badge below for each nature survey you do! Add to your website, include in your newsletters or print out to give out to your class.