EHS Trends In The Education Sector You Should Know About

The education sector is one of the largest employers in the global economy. In the US alone, the education sector employs around seven million workers, according to the US Bureau of Labour Statistics. As a result, the sector holds responsibility for the health and safety of a substantial workforce – without even accounting for the students!

Accordingly, further education institutions and universities have begun to deploy enterprise-grade EHS software to ensure staff and student wellbeing. For example, both West Herts College and Heriot-Watt University have implemented EHS software from EcoOnline to streamline health and safety management.

Commercial teams looking to sell EHS software to organizations in the education sector should be aware of several sector-specific factors, as the education sector:

• Will invest more to ensure high air quality.

  Studies have indicated that educators face an elevated risk of respiratory illnesses, partly due to cramped classrooms and aging school infrastructure releasing harmful toxins into the air. In response, the education sector has begun investing heavily in indoor air quality (IAQ) improvement equipment. For example, in 2025, the Mayor of London launched a £2.7 million programme to supply indoor air quality filters to hundreds of schools. The UK’s National Education Union has also called for higher‑quality mechanical ventilation systems across education facilities. Looking ahead, UK schools may be required to meet formal IAQ reporting obligations as these concerns translate into legislation. This further strengthens the case for the sector to widely adopt dedicated IAQ monitoring and reporting tools, which could be provided by EHS vendors.

• Expects advanced and proven chemical risk management solutions.

  Universities and large further education institutions face significant exposure to chemical hazards, exemplified by the December 2025 incident at the University of Plymouth, where a laboratory leak prompted a full building evacuation. As a result, there is demand for sophisticated chemical management solutions, and vendor offerings are evolving accordingly. VelocityEHS, for example, has strengthened its position by integrating AI-based chemical management tools to better support longstanding university customers such as the University of Arizona. Meanwhile, Ideagen expanded its capabilities through its 2025 acquisition of SafetyStratus, a provider with specialist chemical management expertise and established relationships across major universities. Vendors that can demonstrate deep chemical risk management capabilities and have proven case studies to show are likely to win customers in the education sector.

• Values solutions that can support staff wellbeing.
  UK charity Education Support found that 77% of teachers in the UK experienced symptoms of poor mental health as a result of their work and that more than half of UK university staff had symptoms of depression. Although there is no single solution to improving educator mental health, several approaches can help reduce its prevalence. For example, the BSI Group offers guidance on implementing the ISO 45003 standard, which outlines best practices for managing psychosocial risks. Academic research also suggests that a total worker health approach could provide meaningful support for teachers. With this in mind, it is increasingly important to explore which technologies can enable education facilities to implement psychosocial safety standards and a comprehensive total worker health strategy (see Verdantix Best Practices: Transitioning EHS To A Total Worker Health Approach and Verdantix Smart Innovators: Occupational Health Software (2025)).

For more industry insights on EHS practitioners’ top priorities and the relative strengths of technology vendors serving each market, set up an analyst inquiry call.