Schools in England are to benefit from investment of over £1.4billion in buildings and facilities over the coming financial year.
This includes over £430 million from the Condition Improvement Fund, covering more than 1,400 projects.
The money also includes almost £800 million for local authorities and larger multi-academy trusts to invest in improving and maintaining their schools.
This funding is part of over £7.4 billion capital funding allocated since 2015. In addition, the priority school building programme is rebuilding or refurbishing facilities at over 500 schools across England.
This investment comes after stats last week showed the government is on track to deliver 1 million new school places by 2020 – with 921,000 created since 2010.
Education Secretary Damian Hinds said:
Schools are much more than just buildings; they are the centres of communities, they are where children learn skills for the rest of their lives, and they are safe havens. That’s why it’s vital they are in the best possible condition. The funding will target those schools with some of the most urgent need – making sure children don’t have to spend time in buildings that aren’t fit for purpose.
For the financial year 2019–20, the £1.4 billion of funding includes approximately:
- Almost £800 million for local authorities, voluntary aided partnerships, larger multi-academy trusts and academy sponsors, to invest in maintaining and improving the condition of their schools;
- £433 million for the Condition Improvement Fund, which will cover 1,413 projects at 1,210 small and stand-alone academy trusts and sixth-form colleges;
- Over £200 million of Devolved Formula Capital allocated for schools to spend on small capital projects to meet their own priorities.
Since 2015, the Condition Improvement Fund has allocated nearly £2bn for over 6,000 projects at more than 3,000 schools all over the country.
This year’s funding will go to projects that tackle building condition and health and safety compliance.
Additional funding for energy efficiency projects
On top of this the Department has announced that over £8 million in interest-free loan funding will be split between 167 academies to pay for energy efficiency projects including heating controls, lighting upgrades and insulation.
How to take advantage
Energys Group has helped many schools and colleges apply for (public sector) funding for energy efficiency projects – and many of our projects achieve payback in under 2 years. We can support you through every step of the process, from application through to installation.
Find out how your school can take advantage of the funding options open to you: Our education sector specialists are here to help: contact Energys Group.
