Ahead of an evidence session with a DfE minister in mid-October, the House of Commons environmental audit committee has this week called for evidence on the school estate and the department’s progress on delivering its net zero targets.
This comes as the RAAC crisis continues to engulf more schools (174, up from 147 in late August) and follows a highly critical National Audit Office report this summer which found that 24,000 school buildings in England (38 per cent of the total) are beyond their design lifespan.
Sadly, the NAO report also pointed out a lack of awareness within the department about which of its policies – if any – are having an impact on reducing carbon emissions.
This is all bad news, but the combination of attention on our crumbling school estate and growing concern over our climate change readiness could be a recipe for joined-up thinking and concerted action. What we need are actionable, reliable solutions.
