The Scottish Government

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BUILDING OUR FUTURE: Scotland's School Estate

1. INTRODUCTION

WHY THE SCHOOL ESTATE MATTERS

1. Education is a key priority for the Scottish Executive. Its aim is to give every child and young person the best possible start in life, through delivering the National Priorities in Education ⁴ and closing the gap for those who are not sharing the general level of attainment and well-being. This priority is shared by local authorities - who, through COSLA, have jointly developed this strategy with the Scottish Executive - and by parents, teachers, and others with an interest in education.

NATIONAL PRIORITIES IN EDUCATION

	To raise standards of educational attainment for all in schools, especially in the core skills of literacy and numeracy, and to achieve better levels in national measures of achievement including examination results.
	To support and develop the skills of teachers, the self discipline of pupils and to enhance school environments so that they are conducive to teaching and learning.
	To promote equality and help every pupil benefit from education, with particular regard paid to pupils with disabilities and special educational needs, and to Gaelic and other lesser used languages.
	To work with parents to teach pupils respect for self and one another and their interdependence with other members of their neighbourhood and society and to teach them the duties and responsibilities of citizenship in a democratic society.
	To equip pupils with the foundation skills, attitudes and expectations necessary to prosper in a changing society and to encourage creativity and ambition.

2. The school itself is one aspect of the education infrastructure that bears on all five national priorities and is central to delivering our aim. It provides a focus for education; and responses to the National Debate on Education ⁵ indicate a strong expectation that this role will continue. Most people, and especially pupils, believe that it is important that education is delivered in a social setting where young people learn with others. The school, as a centre of learning, will, therefore, continue to make a major contribution to the education of most children and young people.

3. We are looking to create schools which are conducive to pupils learning and teachers teaching, which are accessible and welcoming, and which are an integral part of the community. Schools send a prominent signal to children, young people and the community of the value that we place on education, and of our ambition for the future. And we are looking at new ways of delivering services to young people and to communities - many of these through schools.

4. One of the challenges in developing a strategy for the school estate is the life span of school buildings - these must serve the needs of pupils, teachers and the community over decades to come. While we can be confident of a long term requirement for schools, we cannot see the detail of the future. Information and communication technology is an example of an issue where schools will need to be able to respond in order to take advantage of new opportunities. We therefore need to develop a school estate with a built-in capacity for flexibility so that we can respond effectively to the challenges of tomorrow.

WHY A SCHOOL ESTATE STRATEGY?

5. We want a school estate that helps every school be a centre of excellence. This extends to the built environment, as well as learning and teaching. It means not just more investment, but smarter investment.

6. Smart investment requires careful planning and forethought. There can be no single blueprint: the right solution for each school must reflect the particular needs and aspirations of its pupils, staff, parents and communities. To be successful the strategy should be developed using the following principles, within a broad framework of joined up objectives and community planning:

> with a clear focus on objectives;

> through partnership working to deliver better services;

> by matching resources to priorities.

WHAT DO WE WANT TO ACHIEVE?

7. This strategy sets out our vision for the school estate and a framework for implementation. This vision - for schools centred around the needs of the child or young person, and the needs of the community - is consistent with wider aims to deliver better public services that focus on the needs of the citizen.

8. This strategy is for the long term. The school estate is a capital intensive fixed asset and it will take commitment and resources to make the changes that we want. Implementation of the strategy - leading to a well designed, well built and well managed school environment - is likely to take at least 10-15 years. The challenge beyond that will be to maintain a school estate that continues to meet future needs. The success of this strategy cannot simply be measured by development of plans over the coming months, or even by new and refurbished schools over several years: its success will be demonstrated over coming decades by a school estate that meets our vision and continues to support pupils and communities and their evolving needs.

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