Green lessons are wasted on parents

Parents are undermining schools' efforts to educate children about being green, a poll found. More than a third (37 per cent) of parents with children of school age acknowledge they do not set the best example when it comes to being energy efficient.

The same proportion say they have made little effort to become energy efficient. The poll of 2,170 parents was conducted by AlertMe, a home energy management service. The findings show that 55 per cent of parents believe their children will be wasteful with energy by the time they are adults.

Mary Turner, the chief executive of AlertMe, said: "Schools are making huge efforts to help make our children environmentally aware. But if parents don't reinforce this at home, there is a real danger that we risk undoing all the good work. This is about eliminating waste, not sacrificing convenience and comfort."