Capital and asset management planning

• Introduction
• Capital planning officers
• Capital guidance
• Asset management plan
• Asset management plan data
• Persons in Control (PIC) training
• School's condition bid funding 2008 to 2009
• School's reducing risk bid funding 2008 to 2009
• School's DDA/access bid funding 2008 to 2009

Introduction

The Capital Planning and Asset Management Team (part of the Asset Management Department) provide advice and support for building matters as they relate to the school and non-school estate managed by the Department for Children's Services. This includes ensuring that the department fulfils its statutory obligations as they relate to the schools estate.

The team ensures that the Local Education Authority (LEA) provides an adequate number of school places and that the accommodation provided is appropriate to the needs of the curriculum and supports a good quality learning environment. This involves the development and implementation of the LEA's Asset Management Plan, but also includes the identification of land requirements, the removal of surplus places or the provision of basic need and the modernisation of existing schools through the delivery of the Education Capital Programme.

Capital planning officers

Each school and non-school establishment has a dedicated capital planning officer who will have a combined role of providing advice and also managing the local authority's duties of approval for asset management and capital projects. The capital planning officer will work in partnership with the school to collect and maintain the asset management data. This is used by the school authority, and the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) in the allocation of resources. They also act as senior user in the development of capital projects and therefore sit on school Project Development Committees and also assess approval gateways. You can download a map illustrating the coverage of each capital planning officer within the City of Plymouth and list which shows which schools each supports from the documents table below.

Capital guidance

Schools play an increasing role in managing their own capital finance. The results of this have generally improved the quality of teaching and learning. As the major stakeholder in developing capital projects, schools are taking the responsibilities of the client. The LEA published guidelines and appendices in 2002 and updated these in 2004 to help schools through the procedures and to help achieve value for money from capital projects. These can be downloaded from the documents table below.

Asset management plan

Education and Lifelong Learning’s asset management plan sets out the information needed and the criteria relevant to make open and transparent decisions on spending on school premises. The document is split into the following which can be downloaded from the documents table below:

• Local policy statement
• Local policy statement appendices
• Statement of priorities

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Asset management plan data

Following our data submission to the DfES at the end of 2005, capital planning officers have now completed the process of visiting all schools to deliver the asbestos survey and other AMP data. This approach was requested through comments made by representatives at the Capital Planning Advisory Group (CPAG) and we hope that this investment of time is seen as supportive to schools in the management of their assets.

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Persons in Control (PIC) training

As the appointed Persons in Control (PIC) of schools, Headteachers have the duty to manage their premises in accordance with various health and safety standards, regulations and legislation. The responsibilities are many, and an understanding of key health and safety issues is essential for fulfilling these responsibilities. Headteachers should now have undertaken PIC training and should be using the PIC log-book and guidance to ensure that these duties are carried out. For further information about the PIC Initiative along with the supporting documentation visit our persons in control support library page.

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School's condition bid funding 2008 to 2009 (previously called seed funding)

Plymouth City Council is committed to increasing pupil achievement through improvement of school buildings. This commitment is underpinned through the condition bid funding 2008 to 2009 (which replaces seed challenge funding) made available through the Authority’s modernisation grant from DCSF to support schools’ work in improving the condition and suitability of school buildings. £350,000 has been set aside for the bidding round this year.

Bids have now been received from schools and are currently being prioritised and approved. Once this process is completed schools will be informed if they have been successful.

Should you require any further information or assistance about the bid process, please contact your Capital Planning Officer on 01752 307421.

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School's reducing risk bid funding 2008 to 2009 (previously called security funding)

Loss control surveys have now been completed for all schools by Zurich Insurance and copies of these surveys have been distributed to schools. The aim of these surveys was to better inform schools of risk issues, allowing the development of strategies to improve the way priority issues are addressed. With this wider attention to risk, rather than just security, it has been decided to re-focus the previous security funding. Along with the change of name, the Authority has increased the allocation from it’s modernisation grant to £150,000 for the 2008 to 2009 bidding round.

Bids have now been received from schools and are currently being prioritised and approved. Once this process is completed schools will be informed if they have been successful.

Should you require any further information or assistance about the bid process, please contact your Capital Planning Officer on 01752 307421.

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School's DDA/access bid funding 2008 to 2009 (previously called school's access initiative)

All schools will be familiar with the criteria for schools’ access initiative, which has been an established funding stream for many years. We are pleased to confirm that the Authority continues to support the bidding fund which remains at £75,000 but has widened the scope of the fund following completion of, the DDA/access surveys for all schools.

This year it is our intention to support schools by providing funds for the implementation of the priority A (immediate) recommendations arising from the DDA access survey rather than enter into a bidding round.

Schools that have priority A recommendations from the DDA access survey, will be contacted by the relevant Capital Planning Officer to agree how best to commission the work.

It is anticipated that DDA/access bid funding will remain in the capital programme and that the usual bidding round will resume next year.

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