New schools for old

More than 1500 primary schools have been given the go ahead to rebuild or refurbish their premises.
Building plans worth £3.5 billion have been approved by the government – the first stage in a programme to update half of all primary schools within 15 years. 700 schools have been rebuild or completely refurbished since 1997, the government claims.
Education secretary Ed Balls said “A decade ago many classroom facilities were in an appalling condition….Today’s announcement means we can build state of the art primary schools at the heart of our communities – so every child and family as access to year-round extended childcare, parenting support, after school activities and access to ICT, sports and arts facilities.
41 local authorities have had their Primary Capital Funding applications agreed for the next two years, and another 92 will be told how much money they will get next year. 15 have been told to resubmit their plans.