Government funds school refurbishment

The Government has promised £1.4billion in funding for school refurbishment and extra facilities.

The funding will offer school refurbishment across hundreds of schools, as part of the government’s aim to create 1million new places by 2020. The new funding includes £800million for local authorities and academy trusts to invest in their schools.

Over £7.4billion has been allocated to schools since 2015. A priority for the funding is improving the energy efficiency of schools and saving money on bills while reducing carbon footprint.

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. So as well as providing the resources for all schools to maintain and renew their facilities, today’s 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.”

The funding will cover the following:

• 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.

The funds are coming from Salix Energy Efficiency Fund provided by the Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy. The department also launched an online hub to help schools find cheaper energy suppliers.

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