Reading has secured £327,000 to raise awareness about air quality in primary and secondary schools.

Reading Borough Council (RBC) is one of 44 local authorities across the country to successfully bid for a share of the £10.7million funding, from the Government’s annual Air Quality Grant.

The council plans to work with the University of Reading to deliver the project, to engage with children and parents from at least 33 schools across Reading, starting in September this year.

The aim of the project is to increase knowledge of poor air quality, its causes, impacts and solutions for primary and secondary school children with age-appropriate activities.

It will also encourage behavioural change in activities that impact poor air quality and aim to reduce this.

University of Reading project partner Professor Hong Yang said: “We've already utilized state-of-the-art sensors to assess air quality in four schools in Reading. This new DEFRA project presents a great opportunity to collaborate with Reading Council, schools, and other partners to work on air quality in schools.

“Our aim is to raise the public’s awareness about the damaging effects of air pollution on children, parents and teachers’ health and inspire communities to make more effective changes that will result in cleaner air and a reduced carbon footprint in schools and the surrounding areas.”

The project will build Key Stage lesson plans, assemblies, activity days and workshops as part of term-length programmes. This could involve the children in data gathering using sensors to determine what air quality is like around the school and home.

RBC lead councillor for Climate Strategy and Transport Tony Page said: “Securing this funding is great news for our schools and for helping to improve Reading’s environment. This will enable us to reach our younger generation and encourage them to be active and passionate ambassadors for the ways we can all help improve air quality.

“We are fully committed to maintaining and improving air quality across the town as we work towards our ambition of a net-zero carbon Reading by 2030. This educational initiative forms part of our wider work to encourage behaviour change.

"We are already supporting four schools to run School Streets – this is another excellent example of an initiative helping promote safer walking and cycling – and we already work closely with our partners Sustrans to deliver workshops in schools promoting walking and cycling.”