Press release: Delivery of schools accelerates as 10th BSF deal is signed
01 August 2007
Contracts worth £2.5bn that will see education transformed in 139 secondary schools have now been signed in 10 local authorities across England.
Building Schools for the Future (BSF) provides an unprecedented capital investment that will see every single one of England’s 3,500 secondary schools rebuilt or renewed, delivering world-class learning environments for students and teachers and local communities across the country.
Sheffield City Council is the latest local authority to have reached this important milestone on 31 July 2007. Other local authorities to have signed deals include: Bradford, Bristol, Greenwich, Lambeth, Lancashire, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle and Solihull.
Chief Executive of Partnerships for Schools, Tim Byles, said:
“Today’s milestone of 10 local authorities having signed deals that will transform their secondary schools is excellent news – both for the students, teachers and wider local communities that will benefit from this unprecedented investment and for the delivery of the national programme as a whole.
The pace of delivery for BSF has accelerated considerably over the recent period. The first brand-new BSF school will open in Bristol this September and around a dozen will be open by the following spring. As more local authorities enter the programme, this will ramp up to around 200 BSF schools every year for the duration of the programme.
The new facilities and technology that BSF provides are starting to help young people reach for excellence and unlock the talent that every single one of them has. BSF will make a real and tangible difference to the life chances of millions of young people across the country. The commitment shown by the team at Partnerships for Schools, the local authority teams and their partners is to be applauded and I congratulate them for reaching this important milestone in the programme.”
Notes to Editors:
- The following table sets out the value of each BSF scheme having reached Financial Close, together with the number of schools to benefit from this funding in the first six waves of the programme.
Local Authority
Value of BSF scheme
Schools
Bradford*
£240m
11
Bristol
£250m
10
Greenwich
£220m
9
Lambeth
£215m
16
Lancashire*
£280m
11
Leeds*
£240m
15
Manchester
£450m
30
Newcastle
£180m
10
Sheffield*
£320m
21
Solihull*
£110m
6
* These local authorities are included in future BSF ‘waves’ and the value of future schemes is not included in this table.
- Through BSF, local authorities select a private sector partner to work with on an exclusive basis to rebuild or renew their schools. Many local authorities are now beginning to recognise the flexibility of this model that enables them to deliver wider local investments, such as primary schools, healthcare, housing and whole regeneration strategies. These wider investment opportunities within local authority areas offered through BSF also introduce a strong commercial imperative that drives private sector performance on flexibility, value for money and fees.
- 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 every one of England?s 3,500 state secondary schools during the lifetime of the programme.
- Partnerships for Schools (PfS) is the delivery agency for Building Schools for the Future. PfS was established in April 2004 as a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB), and is operated and funded under a joint venture between DCSF and Partnerships UK.
MEDIA ENQUIRIES:
Amy Leonard, Communications Director, Partnerships for Schools: 07960 116966
