Revealed: How BP Puts its Branding in Local Schools While Cutting North Sea Jobs

Oil giant BP is promoting its brand to thousands of schoolchildren in almost 100 schools in Aberdeenshire, an area in which it recently slashed a fifth of its workforce.

Documents obtained by DeSmog UK through freedom of information requests show BP sponsoring a tutoring scheme and cooperating with the local council and universities to place its branding in schools.

DeSmog UK’s investigation shows:

  • BP’s branding has been present in primary and secondary schools in Aberdeenshire, with students aged five to 16 years old.
  • Some participating schools and tutors are unconvinced of the scheme’s benefits.
  • BP pays only £2,000 a year to get its branding in front of thousands of students, despite posting profits of almost $3 billion in 2016.
  • BP is closely involved in the design and implementation of the scheme as a member of the controlling steering committee.
  • BP retained control over some of the scheme’s output, and sought to use the resources of publicly funded co-sponsors to promote the company’s involvement.