School buildings to benefit from £6bn renovation programme

9 Feb 15
The government has announced a £6bn expansion of its Priority School Building Programme, with 277 schools set to be refurbished over the next three years.

By Richard Johnstone | 9 February 2015

The government has announced a £6bn expansion of its Priority School Building Programme, with 277 schools set to be refurbished over the next three years.

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg today set out the allocations for 2015-2018, which are intended to allow councils and academy trusts to better plan their own capital spending.

The Priority School Building Programme was launched in May 2012 after then education secretary Michael Gove scrapped the previous government's Building Schools for the Future scheme.

Announcing the extra funding, Morgan said decisions had been made to ensure schools that were most in need of renovation get support.

‘We’re also making sure, for the first time, that every local area can benefit from more funding certainty, so that local councils, academy trusts and voluntary-aided partnerships can plan ahead and make the right investment decisions that will deliver the best possible value for their schools,’ she added.

‘This announcement is a major step towards ensuring all children no matter what their background and no matter where they live have access to the best possible schools and learn in an environment that gives them the knowledge and skills to succeed in the global race.’

Clegg stated that the £6bn package was crucial to ensuring that every child has a fair start in life.

‘Children can’t learn and teachers can’t teach in schools that are cold and have leaking roofs,’ he said.

According to government figures, a total of £18bn has been invested in school buildings over the course of this Parliament.

In the first round of the PSBP programme, 260 schools will be renovated. Sixteen have been completed, 55 are under construction and the remaining projects are in development.

A full list of the schools approved for refurbishment under the latest announcement can be found here.

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