Academies

Academies Land and Buildings Collection Tool (LBCT)

The ESFA have produced a guide to help academy trusts submit their land and buildings collection return. This includes a summary guidance document and example workbook. There are important changes where church-owned land is part of your portfolio and further clarity is provided in the summary document. You can also view an introductory video explaining what the LBCT is. Access to the LBCT is usually from 1st October for four weeks. Academy Trusts that are on Church-owned land required to complete and return it to the diocese in order to achieve the deadline set by the ESFA. Further information is available here.

Asbestos Management Assurance Process (AMAP)

You can access the AMAP portal here.

This will give schools and responsible bodies, who were unable to participate in the first collection, the chance to provide school information and an assured response. The AMAP meets the department’s commitments set out in the March 2015 review of asbestos management in schools, enhancing scrutiny on those responsible for managing asbestos in schools. You are expected to complete the AMAP if you are a responsible body.

A Responsible Body is the main employer of staff at state-funded schools and academies.

State-funded schools and academies include maintained nursery schools, maintained schools (including primary, secondary and middle schools), maintained special schools and academy special schools, pupil referral units, academies and free schools and non-maintained special schools.
This guidance is for anyone who is responsible for the management of asbestos in the education estate and compliance with the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.

Link to Guidance Documents.

The AMAP meets the department’s commitments set out in the March 2015 review of Asbestos Management in Schools, enhancing scrutiny on those responsible for managing asbestos in schools. You are expected to complete the AMAP if you are a Responsible Body.

Responsible Body: the main employer of staff at State-Funded Schools and Academies.
State-Funded Schools and Academies : maintained nursery schools, maintained schools (including primary, secondary and middle schools), maintained special schools and academy special schools, pupil referral units, academies and free schools and non-maintained special schools.

This guidance is for anyone who is responsible for the management of asbestos in the education estate and compliance with the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.

Asbestos Management Assurance Process (AMAP) User guide

Asbestos

The Education Funding Agency has published new guidance on GOV.UK aimed at schools, local authorities and trusts in understanding their obligations and duties in relation to asbestos management in schools. The guidance can be found here.

The guidance was first published in March 2015 and has been updated with more information, including new supplementary guidance on where asbestos may be located in schools.

The following key changes have been made:

addition of further information on how duty holders can assess risks associated with the presence of asbestos in their schools, to prioritise management actions
provision of further information for duty holders on the consequences of not complying with The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, reminding them that, as duty holders, it is their responsibility to manage asbestos in their respective schools
inclusion of new supplementary guidance, to help duty holders understand where asbestos may commonly be found in schools, so that they can work with qualified professionals to make an assessment of the risk of damaging or disturbing the asbestos

EFA strongly recommends that all local authorities, leaders and governing bodies of maintained schools and trusts read the guidance and review the asbestos management plan they have currently have in place to ensure that asbestos is being managed effectively in their schools. There are three interesting and useful documents available through the link above.

Buildings Development Plans

All schools and academies are encouraged to use a Buildings Development Plan when planning budgets for the school year. Governing Bodies are asked to use these in conjunction with their Asset Management Plans when planning what building works should be undertaken in each financial year. The Buildings Development Plan is a five year plan and, once utilised, can become a valuable tool in assisting you with forward planning in allocating funds. There is a plan for each category of school and academy and The plan for an academy can be found at the bottom of this page.

Building Safety Programme and Fire Safety Advice

To further support the government’s response to the Grenfell Tower fire the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, set up the Building Safety Programme (BSP), working with an Independent Expert Advisory Panel to consider emerging issues on fire and building safety more widely. The BSP issues updates as these become available. This includes recent advice for building owners of high-rise, residential buildings with non-ACM cladding, which they are concerned about. Whilst this advice is primarily intended for residential accommodation, it is relevant to other public buildings, such as schools. We want to encourage you to consider this in relation to your school and ensure advice from the BSP is acted upon. You can keep up to date with the latest information from the BSP and view previous advice by registering for automatic updates here.

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, all building owners are required to ensure that an appropriate and up-to-date Fire Risk Assessment is in place for their buildings. As a body responsible for a school, you must comply with the requirements of the Fire Safety Order. You should ensure that you have an appropriate and up-to-date Fire Risk Assessment (FRA) for school buildings within your control. These should take into account any fire safety risks and detail the mitigations in place to manage these. If you are part of a MAT they will need to review this.

One of the interim recommendations Dame Judith makes in her report, is that the FRA should be completed more regularly, particularly for high-rise buildings (any building over 18m in height), which she recommends should be completed annually. We ask that all schools take this opportunity to review the FRA for your buildings, to ensure it is up-to-date and consider your review period for these checks (annually).

Advice on how to complete an FRA is available here. If you would like more information on how to appoint a ‘competent person’ to carry out the FRA, the Chief Fire Officers Association has issued advice on what to consider. You can see this advice here.

Compliance

The aim of the compliance document, School Tests Inspection Checklist, is to provide a summary of relevant responsibilities and to assist Headteachers and premises managers in implementing appropriate testing and inspection of systems and equipment within the school premises.

Not all items may be applicable to your specific site and the list is in no way definitive, but is a guide to covering key areas. This document cannot replace professional advice and Headteachers and premises managers are strongly advised to obtain such advice where required.

Concrete cladding - monitoring building condition

Departmental guidance to support monitoring of building condition by schools and responsible bodies.

Concrete cladding is used in the construction of external walls of many school buildings. It can crack or delaminate, potentially giving rise to risks if not well maintained.
Causes of concrete defects are known and are relatively easy to address if identified in good time.
This guidance recommends periodic inspection and provides information to help schools and responsible bodies undertake such inspections effectively.
The guidance is for all those with responsibilities for maintaining school buildings, including head teachers, business managers and facilities managers.

Concrete cladding - monitoring building condition

Condition Data Collection (CDC) programme

From early 2017 to Autumn 2019, the ESFA’s Condition Data Collection (CDC) programme will inspect every government maintained school in England to collect data about the physical condition of school buildings and how they are managed.

On the DfE website there are four useful documents which academies should familiarise themselves with:

CDC Purpose, Benefits and Limitations

CDC Programme Guide

CDC Guide for Schools

CDC Guide to completeing the School Questionnaire

Schools are required to:

Provide contextual information about their site(s) by completing the School Questionnaire before the site visit
Provide evidence of key building management and compliance documentation relating to their site(s)
Meet with surveyors when they visit
Provide full access to their site when surveyors visit
Inform the Diocese when contact has been made.

Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations were amended in 2015. It is incumbent upon governing bodies to ensure that their client duties under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 are carried out before the proposed works commence.

Client Duties

Under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 a commercial client is defined as an organisation or individual for whom a construction project is carried out that is done as part of a business. Clients must make suitable arrangements for managing the Health & Safety aspects of any building project. This includes ensuring that other dutyholders are appointed as appropriate, which will usually involve at the very least the appointment of a Principal Designer and Principal Contractor at the relevant stage of the process. Clients are also responsible for ensuring that sufficient time and resources are allocated to the process. As a client you will need to ensure that:

Relevant information is prepared and provided to other dutyholders.
The Principal Designer and Principal Contractor carry out their duties.
Welfare facilities are provided for contractors on site. This can be within the school if appropriate or the contractors could provide a cabin and portaloo in the grounds.

Construction Phase Plan

Under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 a Construction Phase Plan is required for every construction project. This is to be prepared by the Principal Contractor but the Client is responsible for ensuring that this is prepared with sufficient, relevant, site specific information.

It does not have to be complicated but at the very least it should include details of the site, specific site personnel, details of the work to be carried out, method statements and risk assessments and any other relevant health and safety information. This list is by no means exhaustive as each site and project will have different requirements and professional advice should be sought if you are unsure. Your Principal Designer should be able to assist in the first instance.

The work involved can be as simple as replacing your windows to something more complicated such as structural alterations. A simple plan before the works commence is usually enough to show that you have thought through about what is going to happen and about health and safety. There are number of documents to assist you:

Needing Building Work Done? - A short guide to the CDM Regulations 2015
Summary of Duties under the CDM Regulations 2015
Managing Health and Safety in Construction
Construction Phase Plan - What builders need to know

These documents are attached below and further information may be found on the Health and Safety Executive website.

Energy Bills - Salix Funding opportunity

If you are interested in reducing energy bills this may be a funding avenue you wish to consider. Click here for further information.

Good Estate Management for Schools (GEMS) manual

The Education Skills and Funding Agency (ESFA) and Department for Education (DfE) have published the Good Estate Management for Schools (GEMS) manual on GOV.UK which will help you deliver an effective estates strategy.

GEMS is a new online resource aimed at individuals and organisations responsible for managing and overseeing the schools estate, helping to ensure that land and buildings support educational objectives and excellent resource management. The resource sets out:

the fundamental policies and procedures needed to manage the school estate effectively
guidance on strategic estate management, organisational oversight, understanding your land and buildings, energy and water management and managing projects
updated guidance on health and safety, compliance and maintenance (replacing existing guidance in Essential Schools Maintenance)
the skills organisations need access to, links to tools and resources that can help

Undertaking a Building Project

Before you undertake a buildings project the relevant approvals must be obtained. After the governing body have approved the works, the trustees of the academy and, if applicable, the trustees of the Multi-Academy Trust, and the Board of Education must also approve the proposed works.

A Project Authorisation Form and a Project Information Form should be completed and returned to the Education Team, together with copies of any quotes received and, where applicable, specifications and copies of plans of the proposed works. Forms can be found at the bottom of this page.

Links

Academy funding
Asbestos Management
Buildings Regulations Portal
Display Energy Certificates
Governors Handbook
Health and Safety in the Construction Industry
Parish Buying Scheme
Planning Portal
Work at Height