analysis
Scape’s
recommendations • A National School Building Strategy
should be created to bring together the Department of Education, local authorities and the delivery marketplace.
6% by 2020, meaning 527 extra classrooms will be required by that time. Edinburgh City Council will require the highest number of additional secondary school classrooms – the equivalent of 57 classrooms. Despite requiring significantly fewer school places by 2020, Orkney Islands Council will see the greatest increase in pupil numbers over the next three years (18%).
Wales In November last year, the Welsh Government announced a second wave of investment in its 21st Century Schools and Education Programme, through ‘Band B’ funding, which will see £2.3 billion put towards rebuilding or updating more than 100 outdated school and college buildings from 2019. Band B will comprise two funding streams over a five year period; one using traditional capital, and one using revenue funding, via a new form of Public Private Partnership called the Mutual Investment Model (MIM). Proposed by local authorities and further education institutions, the programme will address growth in demand for education delivered in Welsh, a reduction of surplus capacity and inefficiency in the system, expansion of schools in areas of increased demand and a review of assets, which could be made available for community use where demand exists. This second phase follows an initial £1.4
billion programme to help create new inspiring and motivating learning environments across Wales, known as ‘Band A’. Although the programme, which was launched in 2014, does not focus solely on secondary schools, it is a good
example of collaboration between Central Government, local authorities, of which all 22 are involved, and education partners to ensure the needs of surrounding communities are met. Construction Excellence Wales is rightly supporting and celebrating the programme as an example of best practice. Wales will see 10,200 extra pupils enter the secondary school system in 2020, an increase of 6.5%, which equates to 340 additional classrooms. With ‘Band A’ of the initiative set to be
complete by March 2019 and ‘Band B’ launching in April 2019, the country is making great steps to tackle the school places shortage. However, with such a significant number of pupils set to be making the transition from primary to secondary school, or in many cases, middle school to secondary school, it is vital that the programme uses modern methods such as offsite construction to build new schools quickly and efficiently. The Welsh Government is encouraging more local authorities to embrace offsite construction, but the level of adoption to date across the country has been mixed
Northern Ireland In the next three years, post-primary school numbers are set to increase by 13%. Although not all of these pupils will choose to attend the non-grammar schools, currently 318 additional post- primary school classrooms will be required to meet capacity – that equates to nine new schools. With post-primary school numbers increasing, primary school numbers will start declining in 2020/21, much like they did in 1996/7, which means
• To maximise the value and efficiency of secondary school sites, commissioning authorities should seek opportunities to share new facilities, such as a local leisure centre, community space or council building, with primary schools or the wider community.
• Creative design solutions, such as building schools of up to three or four storeys to deliver maximum capacity, particularly on smaller sites, without compromising on pupils’ learning experience.
• Adoption of offsite construction as the main method of construction for all school buildings to allow them to be built at a faster rate compared to traditional methods.
• Greater investment in school extensions to significantly improve the cost and time it takes to create additional school places.
• Greater collaboration between councils and developers to ensure schools are built first in major urban extensions and developments.
there will be capacity in existing primary schools. Taking a combined school approach, which integrates both state primary and secondary schools, could be key to tackling these peaks and troughs in both primary and post-primary school numbers – whereby facilities and classroom space can be utilised where required.
www.scapegroup.co.uk educationdab.co.uk 11
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