Jackie Maginnis, chief executive of the Modular and Portable Building Association, scrutinises the aims and achievements of the School Rebuilding Programme and considers if the new government will be able to do any better than the previous regime
The state of the school estate has been under an intense spotlight after buildings across the country were forced to close due to the presence of an outdated type of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC). It has been a tough time for education estate managers but is it likely to get any better under the new administration?
There are a lot of big numbers being banded around at the moment, but what does this actually mean for education estates? And the crucial question is – can these rebuild projects be delivered efficiently and cost-effectively?
To try to get to grips with the enormity of the task in hand, I thought it would be good to take a look back and see what has been achieved. Announced in 2021, there are currently 518 projects in the School Rebuilding Programme, according to government figures. To be clear this is not building new additional schools but refurbishing, extending and rebuilding existing estates.
To date, 23 of the most dilapidated and dangerous schools in the programme have been completed. Previously the Department for Education (DfE) aimed for 83 contracts to be awarded by March 2023. But by June 2024, according to a freedom of information request by the BBC, only 62 contracts had been issued.
So the new government has committed an additional £1.4 billion to make sure the School Rebuilding Programme can continue. A further £2.1 billion is being allocated to maintain and improve school buildings, which is an increase of £300 million compared to last year. Colleges will receive a further £300 million to invest in further education estates.
The government claims this will result in 100 projects starting next year to keep the School Rebuilding Programme on-track and upgrade 518 schools in total. The previous administration aimed to deliver 50 rebuild projects per year but as we now know has delivered only 23 to date.
The question has to be asked, will doubling the target actually have the desired outcome?
Frameworks are fundamental to successful delivery
In my opinion, construction frameworks have a major part to play in the delivery plan. According to the government website and as many will be aware, the Department for Education Schools Offsite Framework (MMC1) expired in January 2024. In addition, the Construction Framework (CF21) is due to expire in November 2025. Of course I would say this, but I do sincerely believe the Offsite Framework is fundamental in rapidly delivering much needed education facilities.
To continue supporting ongoing building requirements after CF21 expires in November 2025, the previous government claims that the DfE started ‘early’ strategy planning in February 2024 – a month after the offsite framework MMC1 expired. Several options are being explored including a procurement framework that delivers both traditional and offsite methods of construction.
Reading around the subject, back in March 2024, Building Magazine reported on a collaborative framework based on the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) model to be designed to deliver the School Rebuilding Programme. The DfE was reported to be working on a new contractor framework designed to speed up the delivery of projects.
The planned ‘Alliance for Learning’ framework was being worked up to deliver the principles of the review by David Mosey – ‘Constructing the Gold Standard’ published in 2021. Information on the Alliance for Learning framework is sketchy, but the relatively new government is ‘confident’ that the construction industry has the capacity to deliver these 100 projects next year.
Without doubt this has to be good news but as we have witnessed, between commitments, aims and targets – there can be a great void in actual delivery.
Councils are warning Angela Rayner her housebuilding targets are ‘wholly unrealistic’ and could be ‘impossible to achieve’. A BBC investigation found the vast majority of councils raised concerns about the government’s plans in a recent consultation.
The target to build 1.5 million new homes across the term of this parliament is a big ask for housing developers. But is delivering 100 school rebuilding projects in a year – an equally challenging task, not only for the DfE, but for the construction industry?
Making a case for MMC
Maximising the benefits of modern methods of construction and volumetric modular technology specifically, we have witnessed the successful completions of so many projects, especially across healthcare estates.
With a mandate to achieve 70 per cent PMV (Pre-manufactured Value) and move towards net zero targets – I believe a new offsite framework is the only way to go. To secure a contract, suppliers are required to show that pre-manufacturing, that is factory based construction methods, will account for at least 70 per cent of their construction costs. This mandate plays to the strengths of a volumetric modular approach.
Exploiting cutting-edge digital design and manufacturing technology, volumetric modular construction combines the ability to carry out onsite groundworks at the same time as manufacturing modules in quality controlled factory environments. The efficiency benefits of this most advanced of offsite construction methods – cannot be overlooked.
It is now well established that volumetric modular technology is a game changer for the construction industry – reducing build times by an impressive 50 per cent according to data from members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
According to construction market analysis providers Glenigan, there has been a gradual rise in the proportion of projects utilising MMC approaches. The 2023 NBS Digital Construction Survey found that 57 per cent of respondents had been part of a project that involved an element of offsite construction. Reflecting the growth in adoption of offsite evident in the Glenigan data, this is an increase from 50 per cent in the previous 2021 survey. For consultants such as architects and engineers, the figure was 58 per cent and it was 63 per cent for contractors.
MMC is a broad category, and our interest obviously lies within the volumetric modular sector and NBS research findings concluded that modular construction was utilised on projects by 34 per cent of survey respondents.
The MPBA and our members firmly believe that the benefits of volumetric manufactured buildings begin in the factory, continue to the construction site and will last through the lifetime of education buildings.
MPBA
The Modular and Portable Building Association (MPBA) plays a key role in supporting all sections of the industry.
Leading best practice principles, the association is represented on many committees for the benefit of members.
Most importantly, the MPBA ensure evolving government policies and decisions are not made on behalf of the construction industry without due consideration for the impact they may have on the volumetric modular sector. M
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