The education estate is ‘both an asset and a mechanism to deliver outcomes for pupils’, according to the Department for Education’s (DfE) newly-published Academy Trust Handbook.

The document provides an overarching framework for financial governance, management and other controls for academy trusts in England.

And compliance with the requirements set out is a condition of the funding agreement between each trust and the Secretary of State for Education.

On estates management, the handbook states: “The DfE expects academy trusts to manage their school estate strategically and effectively and maintain their estate in a safe working condition.

“This includes complying with statutory duties to ensure the health and safety of building occupants.”

It says that trusts should ensure they are aware of, and are applying, the following guidance relevant to estates safety and management:

• School Estate Management Standards, which schools can use to understand where to start to become fully effective, how to progress and prioritise, and how to make best use of expert advice
• Advice, standards and tools for academy trusts at Good estate management for schools, including guidance on an estate’s strategy and asset management plan, and the Estate management competency frameworkfor standards on the skills and knowledge needed for individuals at all levels
• The Condition Data Collection(CDC) process which helps DfE understand the condition of government funded schools across England for the purposes of targeting funding where it is needed most
• Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC): Identification guidance – RAAC is a weaker form of concrete used in floors, walls, and roofs of buildings constructed or modified between the 1950s and mid-1990s and could pose a particular risk
• School capital funding guidance, who it’s for, current and past allocations, how it’s calculated and spending guidance
• Condition Improvement Fund, including links to terms and conditions

Further information and guidance is available from The Trust Network, which is run by trusts for trusts to help its members develop effective, efficient, and economically-sustainable estates and safety management.