Nathan Evans, Leader of the Trafford Conservative Group welcomed this investment in our schools. And went on to say, "School place provision in Trafford is at an all-time low and we will be looking to do a lot more to address that. As Trafford Conservatives, we have always had a vision for education that the Labour-led council and our opposition parties seem not to grasp.
Instead of letting our education slide, with our Key Stage 2 results tumbling this year, we need to enhance our school offering. This council needs to respect our legacy of offering outstanding levels of education and choice throughout the borough. Instead, it's chosen to send our children out of the borough or make them travel miles to school and not address the dire situation".
”Over 1,000 school building improvement projects will receive the green light today as part of plans to boost the condition of the school estate.
859 academies, sixth-form colleges, and voluntary-aided schools in every region of the country will receive a share of a £456 million pot created to help refurbish and repair school buildings and we are delighted to see Altrincham College, Sale Grammar, and Park Road Primary to benefit from government investment."
The condition improvement funding will ensure that pupils can learn in safe, warm and energy-efficient classrooms.
Overall, the government has committed £1.8 billion of capital funding for the financial year 2023 to 2024 to improve the condition of school buildings – including £1.1 billion for local authorities, large multi-academy trusts, and voluntary aided bodies announced in March.
Minister for the School System, Baroness Diana Barran MBE said:
Our Condition Improvement Fund has already completed over 11,000 projects, making a difference to pupils and teachers across the country. These projects help to create safer learning environments that make a difference to the quality of education for pupils.
It’s hugely important that every school has access to high-quality learning facilities and these funding allocations will make sure that responsible bodies can start to plan ahead and get projects started to replace roofs, boilers and windows – so pupils and teachers can learn and work in a comfortable space.
The department has allocated over £15 billion since 2015 to support the government’s priority for schools to have safe, well-maintained facilities that support a high-quality education for pupils.
The announcement follows 239 new school buildings confirmed in December as part of the Schools Rebuilding Program, with 400 out of 500 schools and sixth-form colleges now being selected for rebuilds through the 10-year program.
