Partnerships for Schools



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Press Releases

Press Releases

Building Schools for the Future reaches 50 deal milestone

04 March 2010

The Building Schools for the Future programme has reached a significant milestone with the 50th deal signed between a local authority and its private sector partner to rebuild and refurbish schools, bringing the total value of contracts signed to over £5 billion.

Hull City Council's BSF scheme is the 50th to reach financial close - the 20th contract signed during this financial year - and also the 30th Local Education Partnership (LEP) to be established with the potential to deliver not just secondary schools but academies, primaries and even wider regeneration projects such as social housing and leisure facilities.

Tim Byles, Chief Executive of Partnerships for Schools - the organisation responsible for delivering the full suite of schools capital programmes, including BSF - said:

"Economic conditions over the past 12 months have provided us with a challenging backdrop for BSF, but we have worked closely and collaboratively with colleagues in the private sector to ensure that we could deal flexibly and nimbly to the prevailing climate. As a result we have reached this important milestone - and outperformed the gloomy predictions of some - by signing 20 deals worth nearly £2.5 billion this financial year already.

"Whilst from a business perspective this signals that BSF remains not just on track, but ahead of agreed business targets at this stage of the programme, crucially it means that more schools are now under construction the length and breadth of the country. Over 130,000 pupils and 12,000 teachers are already benefitting from BSF investment in almost 150 schools throughout England, and recent deal flow activity will ensure that this number increases rapidly over the coming years with over 200 schools a year due to open from 2011 onwards.

"The pace of delivery and the quality of new and refurbished schools we are seeing is also testament to the good relationships PfS has nurtured with both the public and private sector. Indeed a recent survey indicated that almost all private sector providers and four out of five local authorities questioned said they were satisfied with BSF as a whole."

BSF Financial Close facts

  • The first BSF scheme to reach financial close was Bristol in June 2006.
  • The first LEP to be formed was in Bristol with partners Skanska. Bristol has completed its Wave 1 project which includes four schools - Bristol Brunel Academy, Bristol Metropolitan College, Brislington Enterprise College and The Bridge Learning Campus.
  • The highest value financial close reached to date is for around £600 million for the first phase of Kent's £1.8 billion BSF project.
  • Knowsley is the first local authority to complete its BSF project, with seven new mainstream schools now open, benefiting over 20,000 pupils. The final school - All Saints Catholic Centre for Learning - officially opened in February 2010.
  • Hull is the 50th project to reach financial close and the 30th LEP to be formed. The LEP comprises Hull City Council, Esteem (Morgan Sindall Investments Ltd, Robertson Capital Projects Ltd, and Sewell Group plc) and Building Schools for the Future Investments.

Notes to Editors:

  • PfS is the government's delivery agent for the full suite of capital investment programmes into schools, helping ensure that taxpayers get the best value from every education pound spent.
  • PfS is responsible for the delivery of around £8.5bn investment into education until 2011- through Building Schools for the Future; the Academies programme; the Primary Capital Programme; and the Devolved and Targeted Capital Programmes.
  • Building Schools for the Future is the largest capital investment programme for 50 years that will provide world-class teaching and learning environments for all pupils, teachers and communities in England. Over the lifetime of the programme, BSF will help improve the life chances of 3.3m children every year.
  • Around a third of all secondary schools in England are now involved in the BSF programme in 96 local authorities. 18 BSF new projects have been selected to start during the current financial year, with more expected to be announced by spring 2010.
  • The Primary Capital Programme (PCP) will renew at least half of all primary schools in England by 2022/23, bringing them up to 21st century standards with wider services for children and families at the heart of their communities.

The 50 deals are as follows:

Hull (03/2010)
Stoke-on-Trent (02/2010)
Rochdale (01/2010) Blackburn with Darwen and Bolton (01/2010)
Salford and Wigan (12/2009)
Newcastle, phase 2, PFI schools (11/2009) Bradford (09/2009)
Birmingham (08/2009)
Durham (08/2009)
Sandwell (07/2009)
Derbyshire (07/2009)
North Lincolnshire (07/2009)
Newcastle, phase 2, D&B schools (07/2009)
Barnsley (07/2009)
Lewisham (06/2009)
Lancashire, phase 3 (06/2009)
Luton (05/2009)
Westminster (05/2009)
Southwark (05/2009)
Bristol (04/2009)
Haringey (03/2009)
Tameside (02/2009)
Tower Hamlets (01/2009)
Newham (01/2009)
Middlesbrough (12/2008)
Hackney (11/2008)
Liverpool (11/2008)
Kent (10/2008)
Islington (07/2008)
Lancashire (second repeat - 07/2008)
Nottingham (06/2008)
Westminster (04/2008)
Leeds (repeat - 03/2008)
Sunderland (03/2008)
Leicester (12/2007)
STaG (12/2007)
Lancashire (repeat - 12/2007)
Knowsley (12/2007)
Lewisham (12/2007)
Waltham Forest (08/2007)
Sheffield (07/2007)
Newcastle (07/2007)
Solihull (05/2007)
Leeds (04/2007)
Lambeth (01/2007)
Bradford (12/2006)
Lancashire (12/2006)
Greenwich (11/2006)
Manchester (08/2006)
Bristol (06/2006)

A survey of local authorities and private sector providers conducted in January 2010 found:

  • Over 90% believe that BSF will help improve education locally by providing young people, teachers and communities with facilities that are fit for the 21st century. (local authorities: 97%; private sector providers: 92%)
  • More than 80% agree or strongly agree that although BSF got off to a slow start, it has accelerated and is now delivering. (local authorities: 84%; private sector providers: 89%)
  • 84% of local authorities and 78% of private sector providers said they were satisfied with BSF as a whole
  • Almost all private sector providers (98%) and four in five local authorities (78%) believe that PfS is effective or very effective in delivering the BSF programme