After a week marked by the closure of thousands of educational establishments due to the heatwave, the State, EDF, Banque des Territoires, ACTEE and their partners are releasing more than 130 million euros.
While the historic heat wave profoundly disrupted the end of the school yearwith nearly 3,500 establishments closed and around 10,000 having had to adapt their schedules during the hottest day of the heatwave, the public authorities are taking action. More than 130 million euros will be mobilized to quickly equip schoolsnurseries and leisure centers cooling solutionswhile launching an important school heritage diagnosis and adaptation programe.
This mobilization comes at a time when French schools appear particularly vulnerable to episodes of extreme heat. During this last heatwave, many parents had improvised protection themselves by applying Meudon white to the windows or hanging survival blankets from the windows in order to limit overheating in the classrooms. © The Telegram
EDF is committed
The first part is based on a commitment toEDF, which devotes 80 million euros to the installation of cooling systems. Until the end of September 2026, more than 100,000 pieces of equipment – fans, misters, mobile or fixed air conditioners – can be financed in more than 10,000 establishments. The aid will take the form of a bonus of 400 euros per piece of equipment, up to ten devices per site. The balance of this envelope will finance fixed bonuses of 10,000 euros intended for establishments wishing to hire more sustainable refresh projectswith a system open until the end of June 2027.
“Today, while heat waves are affecting our country, we wanted to take concrete action by helping schools, nurseries and leisure centers to equip themselves, both with quickly available cooling solutions and with sustainable developments.“, explains Bernard Fontana, Chairman and CEO of EDF.
A second plan of 50 million euros to transform schools
At the same time, Banque des Territoires, La Banque Postale and ACTEE are deploying a complementary program of 50 million euros intended to supporting the climate adaptation of 12,500 schools. The objective is twofold: to allow communities to quickly have a technical diagnosis, then finance work in schools most exposed to high heat.
The program is structured around two components:
– a fully funded diagnostic for up to 12,500 schools and educational buildings, to identify priority works;
– flat-rate work aid for 2,500 particularly vulnerable establishments, making it possible to quickly finance solar protection, shades, air fans, ventilation devices or other passive solutions.
According to the Minister of the Economy Roland Lescure, the first eligible schools will be selected next week, targeting those which were hardest hit during the heatwave. For establishments requiring more significant interventions, the partners indicate that work could be undertaken before summer 2027.
When the diagnostics justify it, reversible heat pumps, capable of also providing cooling in the summer period, can be installed in order to guarantee at least one temperate space for students and staff. © Magnific
Solutions low-tech privileged
Rather than generalizing air conditioning, ACTEE defends an approach based on passive or low-energy solutionsdeveloped as part of a research program launched in 2025. The method combines several levers: exterior solar protection, air fans, night ventilation or even improvement of air intake. According to initial feedback, these arrangements make it possible to significantly improve thermal comfort without systematically resorting to air conditioning. “Our measurements in the field show it: with simple arrangements and modest investments (solar protection, air fans, night ventilation) we can increase the comfort felt in a classroom by up to 7°C. The challenge today is to scale up this approach: that is the whole purpose of this support, which should enable a large number of schools to quickly benefit from it.“, underlines Guillaume Perrin, director of ACTEE.
Experiments carried out in around thirty pilot schools show comfort gains of between 5 and 10°C, thanks to the combination of sun protection, natural ventilation and air circulation. Costs remain relatively contained, between 10,000 and 40,000 euros per establishment, depending on the configurations. Thus, for example, in Grabels (Hérault), the measurements taken show a drop of 4°C in the indoor temperature and a gain of 7°C in felt comfort while in Barberaz (Savoie), the felt temperature remained limited to 27°C during the heat peak of June 24, 2026, compared to 31.5°C a year earlier.
In Saint-Vallier-de-Thiey (Alpes-Maritimes), the developments have made it possible to improve comfort by 6 to 7°C. © Alex Bonnemaison
A lasting issue for communities
Beyond the response to the emergency, the partners present this operation as a first step towardsadaptation of school assets to the effects of climate change : these “emergency measures with strong leverage from the Banque des Territoires should enable communities to act quickly in the face of future heat waves. Our objective is to offer simple, operational and rapid solutions so that the most impacted schools can begin their work before summer 2027. This is a crucial issue of public health and continuity of educational action“, estimates Antoine Saintoyant, director of the Banque des Territoires.
