The 5p Solution: How clean air is transforming attendance and learning in one Hampshire school
Generations of pupils have learned in stuffy classrooms filled with recycled air, but a Hampshire school is now breathing new life into the way lessons are taught.
UK classrooms are among the most densely occupied learning environments in the developed world. Children and teachers spend six to eight hours a day in enclosed spaces, often with limited ventilation. In colder months, windows are kept shut to retain heat; when they are opened, outdoor pollution can enter instead.
The result is a build-up of carbon dioxide and airborne particles, including viruses, that affect health and learning. A growing body of research links poor indoor air quality to increased respiratory illness, worsened asthma and allergies, reduced concentration, and higher pupil absence.
At The Hayling College, headteacher Martyn Reah introduced high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration units into classrooms two years ago. The aim was to reduce illness, keep children and teachers in school, and support learning.
According to the school’s attendance data, the impact has been striking.
Using the same autumn term comparison window across three consecutive academic years, illness-related absence fell from 4.3% to 3.4%, a reduction of around 21%. For a school of Hayling’s size, this equates to more than 4,500 additional pupil-days in school every autumn term.
And the cost? Around 5 pence per pupil per day.
In fact, at Safe Air Schools UK, we have reviewed a selection of high-performance air filtration units using independent third-party performance and cost data from HouseFresh, a respected consumer testing platform. The analysis evidenced that effective classroom air filtration costs pence per pupil per day, making it one of the most affordable health and attendance interventions available to schools.
At Hayling, clean air is now embedded in the school’s attendance strategy. Staff report fewer winter illnesses, improved learning consistency, and particular benefits for pupils who are most vulnerable to poor air quality, including children with special educational needs and disabilities, those with social, emotional, and mental health needs, and pupils eligible for free school meals.
Clean air, the school argues, is not a luxury. It is basic infrastructure, as fundamental to education as safe buildings, clean water, and nutritious food.
Despite growing research and Martyn’s findings, indoor air quality remains largely absent from education policy. Schools are inspected on safeguarding, food standards and water safety, but the air children breathe for a large portion of their waking day is largely unmonitored and unregulated.
That gap is what Safe Air Schools UK was created to address.
Martyn Reah’s experience reflects findings repeatedly demonstrated in scientific studies: cleaner indoor air reduces infection risk, supports respiratory health and improves cognitive performance. Until clean air is fully understood and embedded across the education system, Safe Air Schools brings together evidence, standards, case studies and practical tools to support schools, parents, local authorities and policymakers.
The organisation focuses on immediate, short-, medium- and long-term actions, making clean air affordable, achievable and sustainable rather than aspirational.
Children are central to that mission. Recently, as part of a global call to action on clean air, Safe Air Schools’ work reached New York and the United Nations, where two of our Hampshire junior ambassadors joined educators, scientists and policymakers from around the world to sign a pledge recognising clean indoor air as a human right.
Back in Hayling, the impact continues.
The Hayling College is now the most improved school in the county for grades 9-5 in English and Maths, and outcomes for pupils with special educational needs now exceed national benchmarks. While many factors contribute to school improvement, leadership at Hayling sees clean air as a quiet but powerful enabler.
In a system under intense pressure, one modest environmental change delivered measurable gains.
Clean air works silently, protects the vulnerable and keeps children in school learning. But it shouldn’t depend on postcode, fundraising capacity or an incredibly proactive headteacher.
Martyn Reah’s leadership has demonstrated the research and what is possible. The question now is how quickly the rest of the county and country will follow.
Martyn is an ambassador for Safe Air Schools UK. For more information, go to www.safeairschools.org