The Department for Education’s consultation on the proposed subject content of the Natural History GCSE is a vital and rare opportunity to shape the curriculum and share evidence on what high quality climate and nature education should look like.
Where and how to submit a response to the consultation
The deadline for submitting a response is September 4th, 2026.
Overview: landing page for the official consultation.
Consultation documentation: the UK Government’s ‘consult.gov’ platform hosts the main documentation:
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GCSE natural history proposed subject content - Consultation document (PDF)
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GCSE natural history proposed subject content - Equality impact assessment (PDF)
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GCSE natural history proposed subject content document (PDF)
It takes about two hours to read through these documents in full, but you may not feel you need to digest it all in depth. You will likely be able to familiarise yourself with the proposed content, the aims of the GCSE, and the equity dimensions, in under an hour.
Feedback from experts: in July, Global Action Plan and Teach the Future brought together leading voices from across ecology, education and youth campaigning to share thoughts on the proposed GCSE content and how to respond to the consultation. You can read a summary of key themes that emerged from the discussion in our write up.
Online survey: to provide a submission, complete the online survey.
Read the write up of our Natural History consultation webinar
Natural History GCSE consultation webinar
How to fill out the online survey
The online survey is 18 pages long. You do not need to answer all of the questions. If you have nothing to say in response to a question, you can leave it blank or mark it ‘N/A’ (not applicable) and move on to the next question or page. The important stuff starts on page 9, and you do not need to complete the survey all in one go, there is an option to save your response and return later.
Page 2 lists who this consultation is for, if you do not feel that you fit into any of the categories they set out, do not worry, you won’t be asked to tick a box, you can still submit a response, your views are valid.
Page 3 is a note on confidentiality. It is possible to submit an answer, or the whole survey confidentially. However, DfE do ask that you explain why your response should be treated confidentially. There is a link on that page to the DfE Personal information charter.
Page 8 is where the survey actually starts, they ask for some personal information and want to know if you are responding as an individual or part of an organisation. If it is the latter, be sure you have permission to respond on behalf of your organisation. Remember too, there is nothing stopping you from responding multiple times. You can respond as an individual and again as part of any organisations you represent.
Pages 9 and 10 ask specific questions about the proposed subject content of the Natural History GCSE. The DfE want to hear your views on the content of GCSE, the fieldwork requirements, and he subject aims. This is therefore where you will start to say what you actually want to say.
Before answering the questions on page 9 and 10, we would recommend watching our recent webinar, or reading our summary of it. This will give you some insights into how other experts in the climate and nature education sector are responding. These insights will help you with the remaining questions too.
Pages 11, 12 and 13 cover appendix 1: Use of mathematics and statistics in natural history, appendix 2: Examples of wildlife typically found for each habitat, and appendix 3: Habitat coverage requirements.
Page 14 provides space for general feedback on things not covered by the previous questions. There is a free text box here, so it is an opportunity to discuss bigger picture issues. This question does seem to come to early as there are specific questions that come after it – so to avoid repeating yourself, do please look at the questions on pages 15 and 16 first.
Page 15 covers Equality, there are two questions to answer. One is on the impact the GCSE will have on any specific groups, the second is on the alterations that could be made to ensure that the GCSE is aligned with the Equalities Act 2010, advances equality of opportunity, and fosters good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.
Page 16 covers the Government’s environmental principles (EP) duties. This is a duty to assess the impact of any new policy on the environment. They are looking for both positive and negative potential effects on a number of environmental issues.
Page 17 is a tick box to confirm you are ready to submit your response.
Page 18 confirms you have submitted it and generates you a PDF version of your response.
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