Wales invests in schools not “fit for purpose”

Released 16/07/2010

Welsh schools benefit from £144m cash injection

The Welsh Assembly Government continues to show commitment to improving school buildings in Wales, as a new funding package worth £144.8m was announced by Education Minister Leighton Andrews this week as part of its ‘One Wales' agenda. This latest investment by the Cardiff-based government brings the total amount of funding available for schools in Wales to £702.8m.

This investment aims to provide authorities across Wales with the means to build new schools, improve school facilities, meet Welsh Medium provision and develop a number of purpose-built special educational needs schools.

This programme will also enable the development of three new secondary schools projects - ‘Gateway to the Valleys' in Bridgend, St Teilo's in Cardiff and also Penarth Learning Community in the Vale of Glamorgan.

The £144.8m capital investment will seek to develop flagship projects for the new 21st Century Schools Programme with innovation in areas such as sustainability, design and investment in ICT.

Andrews said: "Today's announcement of £144.8million capital investment in schools demonstrates clearly our ongoing commitment here in Wales to improving and enhancing school buildings. Projects supported in this wave will transition progressively into the 21st Century Schools programme."

This comes in the wake of a report from the Auditor General for Wales that found many school buildings in Wales are still in a poor state following "weaknesses" in the management of the investment programme and have a long way to go before all of them were "fit for purpose".

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