160 Schools Capital Programme 2021 PDF 447 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Executive Member for Culture, Communities
and Education and Director of Education, Prevention and Partnerships submitted
a report for the Executive’s consideration. The purpose of the report was to
seek approval of new schemes to be added to the Schools Capital Programme for
delivery in the academic years 2020/21 and 2021/22.
Middlesbrough Council shared responsibility
with governing bodies for the maintenance of 12 community and foundation school
buildings across the town. The responsibility for general maintenance, repairs
and minor capital works was devolved to schools. The Council was responsible
for major capital schemes such as the replacement of substantial parts of
buildings, the provision of new buildings and other high value, strategic
schemes that would be unaffordable by schools on their own.
The Council was also responsible for ensuring
there were sufficient school places across the town to be able to meet demand.
Investment could be in both locally maintained schools and academies.
Schemes were selected to address maintenance,
sufficiency and other strategic priorities. Schemes were prioritised to address
those elements of schools with the most urgent need or to secure value for
money as part of a larger programme of work.
Appendix 1 of the submitted report set out the
programme proposed for delivery during the 2020/21 academic year, running into
2021/22. It included schemes aimed at improving the condition of schools - roof
works, fire alarms, improvements to heating systems and structural works and
investment to provide more school places.
OPTIONS
The
Executive could have chosen not to approve the schemes for inclusion in the
Schools Capital Programme. In the short term, that could have led to elements
of the buildings identified failing, resulting in lost teaching and learning
time, inappropriate learning environments, Health and Safety risks and a
shortage of school places.
In the
longer-term, such an approach would have led to the gradual decline of the
condition of the schools, children being out of school unnecessarily and
escalating costs for both the schools and the Council.
ORDERED
That the
new schemes included in Appendix 1 be added to the Schools Capital Programme
for delivery in 2020/21 and 2021/22.
REASON
To ensure
that the grant funding available was spent in a timely manner on improving
teaching and learning environments and outcomes for young people.
To
deliver the Council’s statutory obligation to ensure there were sufficient
school places to meet demand, in particular at secondary age or as a result of
housing development, and to meet suitability and condition requirements.
There was
no obligation for the Council to consult over those schemes. Schools named in
the programme had been engaged on a tentative basis to ensure that, where a
school contribution to the cost of schemes was required, that could be agreed.
The
Schools Capital Programme had not been examined by the Overview and Scrutiny
Board or by a Scrutiny Panel.