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Schools: Buildings

Volume 459: debated on Thursday 26 April 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance he has given schools on the use and suitability of temporary classrooms; and if he will make a statement. (132916)

The Department’s guidance encourages authorities and schools to fully consider and compare the costs and benefits of options for the provision of accommodation.

Central Government capital support for investment in schools has increased from under £700 million in 1996-97 to £6.4 billion in 2007-08 and will rise further to £8 billion by 2010-11. Progress is being made year by year in improving the quality of the school building stock. Given the high levels of funding, authorities have the opportunity to replace temporary classrooms where they are considered to be unsuitable.

Table 1: number1 of registered child care places for children under eight years of age in out of school day care—position at 31 March each year

London boroughs

19972

20062

Inner London

City of London

70

200

Camden

n/a

1,700

Hackney

1,110

2,000

Hammersmith and Fulham

n/a

1,000

Haringey

200

1,700

Islington

1,100

1,300

Kensington and Chelsea

700

1,500

Lambeth

n/a

1,900

Lewisham

1,000

2,200

Newham

200

1,900

Southwark

2,100

4,200

Tower Hamlets

n/a

1,400

Wandsworth

1,000

3,600

Westminster

700

1,100

Outer London

Barking and Dagenham

200

700

Barnet

300

3,100

Bexley

200

800

Brent

300

1,300

Bromley

300

2,400

Croydon

700

3,700

Ealing

500

2,100

Enfield

300

1,800

Greenwich

200

2,300

Harrow

200

1,400

Havering

300

1,100

Hillingdon

100

1,100

Hounslow

600

1,400

Kingston upon Thames

300

1,300

Merton

300

2,200

Redbridge

200

1,300

Richmond upon Thames

400

1,800

Sutton

100

1,200

Waltham Forest

n/a

2,000

n/a = Not available.

1 Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100 places.

2 Data source: Children’s Day Care Facilities Survey.

3 Data source: Ofsted.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children in (a) secondary and (b) primary schools were taught in temporary accommodation in each London borough in each year since 1997. (132917)

Data showing numbers of temporary buildings have been received from local education authorities for three years since 1997, but the data do not show numbers of pupils taught in those buildings.

Central Government capital support for investment in schools has increased from under £700 million in 1996-97 to £6.4 billion in 2007-08 and will rise further to £8.0 billion by 2010-11. Progress is being made year-by-year in improving the quality of the school building stock. Given the high levels of funding, authorities have the opportunity to replace temporary classrooms where they are considered to be unsuitable.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was spent on school buildings in each of the last 30 years at current prices. (133449)

Expenditure on school buildings in England each year is determined by each local authority, using both resources both from the Department for Education and Skills and other resources available locally. Accordingly, no central records are kept of expenditure at local authority level. Capital allocations for school buildings and associated capital infrastructure in each of the last 30 years are set out in the following table, in £ billion.

These include ICT capital allocations and, from commencement in 1998-99, projects funded through PFI. Capital expenditure by local authorities will not necessarily be incurred in the year allocations are announced, owing to timing differences.

Allocation figures have been converted to current prices using the 2005-06 GDP deflator.

£ billion

1977-78

1.4

1978-79

1.3

1979-80

1.0

1980-81

1.1

1981-82

0.8

1982-83

0.7

1983-84

0.7

1984-85

0.7

1985-86

0.7

1986-87

0.7

1987-88

0.6

1988-89

0.8

1989-90

0.7

1990-91

0.8

1991-92

0.9

1992-93

1.0

1993-94

0.8

1994-95

0.8

1995-96

0.6

1996-97

0.7

1997-98

0.9

1998-99

1.1

1999-2000

1.2

2000-21

2.1

2001-22

2.1

2002-23

3.5

2003-24

4.1

2004-25

4.7

2005-26

5.6

2006-27

5.7