Conservative BSF Policy

It won’t have escaped people’s attention that the FT ran a piece on Conservative BSF policy this morning. Needless to say, the Tories are keen to point out where they think the programme has lost its way, and to float their ideas for improvement. Read beyond the obvious electioneering though and you find some useful signposts.

Significantly, the need to renew schools isn’t  at the heart of the debate. What the Tories do question is the need for signature buildings with very high price tags. The alternative idea they’re floating is more re-use and refurbishment of existing property.

It’s hardly surprising. We’ve been predicting for a while that if funding is tight, we’ll see less glamorous architecture and more functional buildings. Paradoxically, less new build and more refurbishment would be good for a company that supplies educational ICT and learning spaces. If you can’t have a landmark new building, why not focus on what goes inside it? There are plenty of examples of schools making incremental improvements, and investing significantly to achieve them. (And, on a very utilitarian note, this kind of business is easier and cheaper to bid for.)

The FT piece also quotes Francis Maude, Shadow Cabinet Office Minister as saying, “What makes a school effective is teaching…” That’s unarguable: places of learning need great teachers; and those great teachers want resources and materials to work with. A simple bit of analysis we’re working on suggests that schools with good Ofsted reports are also schools that prioritise their investments in equipment and resources. Good schools make good customers.

There’s no doubt that that a Conservative government would look closely at the BSF scheme. For instance, they’ve already signalled that their preference is for new schools to take the form of independent academies, outside of local government control. Equally though, there’s no doubt that education would be a powerhouse department in a Tory administration - Michael Gove’s performance at the recent Party Conference made that clear.