PfS hits business targets as BSF delivery gathers pace
31 March 2008
The end of the financial year has seen PfS meet its 2007/8 delivery targets as the programme to rebuild or remodel state secondary schools across England has gathered pace over the past 12 months.
The last year has seen acceleration across all phases of the BSF programme: from a number of measures which have helped reduce the pre-procurement timetable by as much as six months, to plans to keep the momentum in the programme by giving authorities in Waves 7-9 the chance to bring forward entry and start on their Building Schools for the Future journey this summer.
A total of 18 BSF deals have now been signed in local authorities with the private sector, worth over £2.5 billion. Sunderland became the most recent scheme to reach financial close in March, one of eleven deals completed in this financial year.
A total of 12 Building Schools for the Future (BSF) schools are now open nationwide from Newcastle in the north to Bristol in the south. One of the latest – The Michael Tippett School for students with Special Educational Needs in Lambeth – will be officially opened by the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, the Rt Hon Ed Balls MP, on 3 April.
The last year has also seen PfS focus on ways to make the procurement process more timely and efficient, and provide programme savings in the region of £250 million, as part of the BSF Procurement Review which will be sent to Ministers for approval shortly.
Tim Byles, Chief Executive of PfS, said: “For me, the words which best describe the past year for PfS and the state of the BSF programme are dynamic and maturing. BSF is operating with increasing pace in a vibrant environment. Over the last 12 months we have begun seen the fruits of our labours with eight schools opening – bringing the total to a dozen - and many authorities making real progress with their plans to transform education for millions of young people in England.
“We are also working in an increasingly mature market and with increasingly experienced stakeholders, who have learned, and applied, the lessons from earlier engagement in the BSF process. This is starting to have real benefits for the timeliness, efficiency and cost-effectiveness of the programme as a whole, and I look forward to the implementation of process changes from the procurement review enhancing this further.”
For more information contact Amy Leonard, Communications Director, on 07960 116966.
Notes to Editors:
- 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 (formerly DfES) and Partnerships UK.
- The 18 BSF projects to have signed contracts with their private sector partners are: Bradford; Bristol; Greenwich; Knowsley; Lambeth; Lancashire; Lancashire repeat; Leeds; Leeds (repeat); Leicester; Lewisham; Manchester; Newcastle; Sheffield; South Tyneside and Gateshead; Solihull; Sunderland; and Waltham Forest.
- There are now 12 BSF schools, including “Quick Win” schools, open nationwide: Ifield School, Kent (March 08); Michael Tippett SEN School, Lambeth (Feb 08); Sandon High School, Stoke (Feb 08); Birches Head, Stoke (Oct 07); Elm Green, Lambeth (Sept 07); Bristol Brunel Academy (Sept 07); Sixth Form, Haringey (Sept 07); Oxclose, Sunderland (June 07); Chaucer, Sheffield (Oct 06); Bamburgh, STaG (Oct 06); All Saints, Newcastle (Sept 06); and Solihull Centre for Inclusive Learning (May 06).
- The new PfS website (www.partnershipsforschools.org.uk) includes progress reports on every BSF scheme, and a new online collaboration tool will be launched shortly to give stakeholders the chance to form online networking groups to discuss BSF issues and challenges.
