Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 3
3
The Department still does not understand well enough the conditions of the school estate, meaning...
Conclusion
The Department still does not understand well enough the conditions of the school estate, meaning it does not know whether pupils have access to the learning facilities they need. Some academy trusts are building large reserves, and these may be invested in capital projects. However, as we have previously reported, the Department does not have information on whether trusts have earmarked reserves for particular projects and therefore cannot effectively challenge academy trusts on the build-up or planned use of excessive reserves. The Department does not systematically collect comprehensive data on the capital investments held by academy trusts which are specifically aimed at improving children’s learning outcomes. It therefore does not routinely monitor how much schools have been able, or plan, to spend on capital projects of this nature, for example IT provision, science and technology labs, and arts facilities. The latest condition data collected by the Department estimates that £11.4 billion is required for essential remedial work across all schools. The Department has made available £5.6 billion of capital funding for the education sector in 2021/22, of which £1.8 billion is specifically for maintaining and improving the condition of school buildings. There is a risk that schools are not receiving sufficient capital funding to invest in facilities that enhance educational outcomes. Ofsted have reported instances where it has downgraded schools based on inadequate facilities. However, the Department may not know where to target funding to improve school facilities because it does have a sufficient understanding of where the gaps are. Recommendation: The Department should, within the next year, collect and publish data on pupils’ access to learning facilities, and the condition of such amenities, for example IT provision, science and technology labs, and arts facilities. and associated equipment. The Department should report how much capital investment is required
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
3.1 The government disagrees with the Committee’s recommendation. 3.2 The department has noted the Committee’s recommendation. The department recently piloted central delivery of Net Capacity Assessments (NCA), which assess the teaching space (size, type and use of rooms) in individual schools. It is developing plans to roll-out centralised delivery of NCA across secondary and special schools from 2023. As well as providing a more up-to-date and accurate picture of capacity, there will be opportunities to explore joining-up NCA and condition data to improve the department’s intelligence on the quality of provision across the estate. 3.3 All new buildings delivered by the department provide suitable accommodation built to high standards. The department recognises that the suitability of buildings can be a particular challenge for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). £2.6 billion has been committed over the next three years to provide new places and make existing provision suitable and accessible for children and young people with SEND or who require alternative provision. 3.4 The department, however, continues to prioritise ensuring sufficient school places and that the estate remains in a safe, operational condition. That is why both departmental and local authority resources are focused on collecting essential data to support these priorities. In addition to collecting annual school capacity data, the department has significantly improved its understanding of the condition of the school estate, collecting consistent, comparable data through the Property Data Survey (2012-2014) and the Condition Data Collection (2017-19). The department has published summary findings from these surveys and shared detailed reports with schools and their responsible bodies. The Condition Data Collection 2 is collecting updated data through to 2026.