Safety fears have been raised by multi-academy trust (MAT) leaders over ageing school buildings and the delays in the Government’s rebuilding programme.

According to a new report from the Queen Street Group (QSG), issues occupying the minds of MAT heads include the need to invest in better school site security and building fabric upgrades.

In its annual report, QSG, which represents a network of academy trusts, says capital maintenance remains a key issue, with the ‘accelerating rate of decay’ in the school estate outpacing available funding.

And it adds that the lack of a clear national strategy to refresh school buildings is ‘placing great pressure on trusts to make limited funding stretch further’, with many school assets now ‘beyond life’.

Trust leaders also highlighted the impact of delayed rebuilding projects, which they say are compounding maintenance problems and making it harder to plan investment.

Trusts also want to make progress towards net-zero emissions, but say this ambition is being hindered by a lack of significant funding. The report also notes that safeguarding and security challenges have driven new spending, with many trusts ‘invest[ing] in new equipment and security measures’ following ‘tragic events’, such as the Southport attack last year.