Agenda item

1.50

The Committee have requested to receive an update on the delivery of the Children Education & Families Capital Programme including the additional school places successfully delivered in 2020 and the additional school places the council plans to deliver in 2021 and 2022 (ESC7).

The Committee had requested to receive an update on the delivery of the Children Education & Families Capital Programme including the additional school places successfully delivered in 2020 and the additional school places the council plans to deliver in 2021 and 2022.

Accordingly, the Head of Access to Learning, Allyson Milward attended the Meeting to update Members on the current position.  She reported that as well as directly delivering capital projects the Council also worked closely with academy trusts who wished to self-deliver their expansion project. This is managed via a formal funding agreement between the academy Trust and the Council.

If a new school was required, the Council sought to secure land and funding from housing developers. As part of the Option Appraisal process the Council explored opportunities for relocation and expansion of existing schools on to new sites alongside the need for new academies to be created.

The Council often delivered new schools, directly managing the design and procurement process. In some cases, developers and academy sponsors had opted to self-deliver new schools, where this was the case the Council worked closely with the third party to support the design process and coordination of the delivery programme.

In recent years the Council has also been successful in securing the provision additional pupil places by the creation of new schools through the DfE ’wave’ Free School programme. This involved working closely with academy sponsors to make a case for a new Free School and supporting a successful bid application. Successful projects were usually directly delivered by the Department for Education (DfE), for example the new Bloxham Grove SEND Free School currently in development

Details of the capital investment programme to provide additional pupil places in 2020, and the planned investment for additional pupil places in 2021 and 2022 was summarised below; a detailed breakdown of individual projects is provided at Annex A to the report.

2020 (Complete)

·            9 schools expanded

·            3 new primary schools

·            1 new secondary school

2021 (Planned)

·            11 schools expanded

·            1 new primary school

2022 (Planned)

·            6 schools expanded

·            2 new primary schools (includes relocation/expansion of an existing school)

·            1 new SEND school (externally funded ‘wave’ Free School)

The delivery of the Council’s capital programme, including CEF basic need, was managed in accordance with the council’s capital governance framework and is subject to regular review and monitoring at a corporate level.

All the critical mainstream pupil places required for September 2020 had been provided. This had been achieved either through the completion of capital works in time for September occupation or, where completion was not possible, using contingency arrangements agreed with individual schools.

Projects providing additional pupil places for use in 2021 and 2022 were being progressed and in some cases construction work was already underway. All projects were closely monitored to ensure that appropriate contingency plans were in place in the event of additional accommodation not being completed in time. This was particularly important as the council continued to deliver its capital programme during the Covid19 pandemic.

The delivery timescale of new schools being delivered by third parties (e.g. Graven Hill Primary School and Bloxham Grove SEND Free School) were still subject to confirmation.

Projects required beyond 2022 were in various stages of development, those linked to the delivery of new housing are subject to monitoring and review in light of current uncertainty with developers housing delivery programme.

Councillor Howson queried why the Swan School was not on the list and whether it was due to the different way in which it was being funded directly from the DFE and whether there was any early indication of pupil number changes as a result of Brexit?

Mrs Milward reported that the Swan School opened in 2019, which was why it did not appear on the list for 2020.  In relation to the pupil number changes, she reported that they had not looked at that issue yet.  They were currently looking at the applications they had received for secondary school places for September and a certain amount of analysis had been undertaken.  Applications were down on what they were expecting in terms of housing growth and they were questioning whether this was due to slowed housing growth.

Councillor Sanders in relation to paragraph 14 of the report, queried what ‘subject to confirmation’ meant against the Graven Hill Primary School and Bloxham Grove SEND Free School.  In response Mrs Milward reported that the Bloxham Grove was being delivered by the DfE as it was a free school, so the projected completion date was September 2022.  She believed they were on track for that date but were due to meet with the project teams to ensure that any issues could be addressed.

Carole Thomson asked whether the schools maintenance list could go on school news and queried how confident officers were that the list was robust, given the recent lack of surveys of schools.  Mrs Milward agreed that the list could go on school news but thought there could be a better mechanism for getting the information out to schools and was working with property colleagues on that issue.  There was a discussion currently being undertaken about how condition surveys for the entire council’s property portfolio could be undertaken, ready to inform the next capital programme in 2023.

Councillor Matelot queried whether Icknield College planning another form entry would clash with the Chargrove Airfield School.  In response, Mrs Milward explained that the spaces were needed now, so catchment areas would be altered as and when the new school was built.

Councillor Ted Fenton queried whether with all the expansions there were currently any small schools that were in danger of closing.  Mrs Milward responded that officers were in discussion with any schools where there was a danger of them becoming unsustainable to help them remain sustainable.  There was no immediate danger of school closures at the current time.

The Committee thanked Mrs Milward for her report.