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Partnerships for Schools (PfS) has assumed responsibility for the management and delivery of all schools capital programmes – a total of £21.6 billion over the entire Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) period up to 2011.

 

This move follows the announcement by Schools Minister Vernon Coaker in June that all school building and refurbishment programmes would transfer to PfS from the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF).

 

PfS has already put in place strong day-to-day management of the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) and Academies building programmes, which is rebuilding or refurbishing all secondary schools in England. Now its remit will expand to also include the Primary Capital Programme as well as a range of projects funded through devolved or targeted capital programmes.

 

On top of the existing £9.3 billion for BSF in the CSR period up to 2011, PfS will take on the following programmes:

 

• Primary Capital Programme: funding for national primary school building programme earmarked in every local authority - £1.9 billion in the CSR period up to 2011
• Devolved Capital Programmes: funding for schools which is spent on capital projects – almost £7.8 billion in the CSR period up to 2011
• Targeted Capital Programmes: funding for a wide range of targeted projects aligned to specific policies including carbon reduction and school kitchens – almost £2.6 billion in the CSR period up to 2011.

 

The changes will make delivering centrally-led school building programmes easier and more joined up with a single agency dealing with all local authorities, schools, the construction industry and private sector leading to ‘one conversation’ for all stakeholders involved.

 

This will make it easier to put in place consistent delivery models and standards and lead to better sharing of learning and good practice across the range of capital programmes. The changes will lead to improvements in effectiveness and economies of scale by centralising skills and processes.

 

The DCSF will retain a Central Capital Unit providing policy advice to ministers that cuts across all the department’s capital programmes.
Tim Byles, Chief Executive of Partnerships for Schools said:

 

“For each of the last three years now, PfS has met or exceeded its delivery targets for school openings and we continue to look for ways to improve the processes that support the delivery of the programme and build on recent changes which are delivering time and cost savings.

 

“Our goal is to deliver inspiring learning environments for every young person in the country, whilst ensuring at the same time that we get the most out of every education pound spent.

 

“Our new and expanded role is in recognition of our track record as an effective delivery organisation. Earlier this year, the National Audit Office, the all-party Public Accounts Committee and the CBI acknowledged the strengths of PfS’s central management and leadership of BSF and we look forward to applying the same approach to the wider family of capital programmes that seek to improve the life chances of all young people.

 

“These changes represent a move towards more joined-up delivery of investment and will enable us to have ‘one conversation’ about strategic priorities for local authorities and the private sector.”

 

Editor's Notes
This press notice relates to 'England'
Notes to Editors:

 

1. The expanded remit for PfS is part of the wider aim to transfer the management of major delivery projects from Whitehall to Government agencies, with smaller, more strategic central government departments. They also build on the Children's Plan commitment in December 2007 to have a more joined-up and consistent approach to delivering capital programmes for all children and families services.

 

2. Partnerships for Schools (PfS) is the delivery organisation for Building Schools for the Future. PfS was established in April 2004 as a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB). PfS is a 120-strong organisation, with specialist expertise including educationalists, designers, ICT specialists, commercial managers and project management.

 

3. 85 local authorities are now engaged in the BSF programme, with 26 Local Education Partnerships formed to deliver school building projects in these areas.

 

4. Building Schools for the Future (BSF) is the largest single schools capital investment programme for over 50 years. The aim is to rebuild or renew England’s state secondary schools estate during the lifetime of the programme.

 

5. The National Audit Office report into BSF, published in February 2009, stated that the programme is now being well managed and that PfS is keeping costs under control. It added: BSF schools have been built to a higher specification and space standards than previous schools.

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