Design and capital delivery - FAQs for schools
If your question is not answered, please contact SchoolsDCD@hertfordshire.gov.uk
Capital works funding
All maintained schools are able to apply to Hertfordshire County Council for Capital funding using an agreed process. In order for the works to be considered for funding, you will need to send a business case (or bid) to SchoolsDCD@hertfordshire.gov.uk.
The business case should consist of:
- one Page business case
- copy of the school’s asset management plan
- condition survey including estimated cost of works (there is an additional pipework questionnaire if applicable)
There is comprehensive guidance on capital works funding on the Grid – if you follow this link you should find all the relevant information, including document templates and deadlines for submission.
Maintained schools have delegated authority, responsibility and a duty of care for their site and have revenue funding (plus a small amount of capital) via the Dedicated Schools Grant and the Devolved Formula Capital to discharge repairs and maintenance. As a consequence, HCC has no revenue funding to support schools. Grant funding for capital repairs can be applied for through the business case process and is allocated on the basis of condition and need. Funding is prioritised for major capital projects such as replacement boilers, roofs and windows.Works below £15k are unlikely to attract funding as this falls below the minimum threshold for capital funding. Funding will not be awarded in arrears except in exceptional circumstances.
Schools that have converted to an academy are unable to apply for capital funding.
Schools which have made a bid for capital funding and subsequently choose to convert to an academy or are in process of conversion should inform SchoolsDCD@hertfordshire.gov.uk
We will then contact you to discuss this further as cases where funding has been agreed and/or works commissioned will be treated on an individual basis in liaison with both Children’s Services and the academy sponsor.
All dates are published on the capital funding page. Each term, all bids will be reviewed after the deadline date for submission.It is not uncommon for there to be 12-18 months between approval of a bid and the works commencing on site.
Since April 2017 school contributions have been waived in an effort to alleviate some of the financial pressures many schools face. Schools are therefore no longer required to contribute to the cost of works delivered via the Capital Works Programme.
HCC’s Property Team oversee the majority of capital projects including contract management and finances. A Project Manager will be assigned to support the school and liaise with consultants and contractors to deliver the works. They will aim to contact the school early in on the design and specification to get certainty on the project cost and programme.
Works Contractors attending site do not normally require a DBS check and should therefore be treated as visitors to the site. Contractors managing larger projects will normally employ a designated Site Manager who will oversee the works and with whom the school can address any concerns. The school should set out any reasonable expectations in respect of safeguarding at an initial commissioning meeting with the Contractors and (where relevant) the Property Consultants.
This type of work is rarely granted capital funding. Condition related funding is prioritised for major capital projects such as replacement boilers, roofs and windows. Bids for reception areas, gates & fencing, fire alarm upgrades etc will be referred to the HCC Health and Safety Team for guidance.
Schools are often advised to plan and fund this type of improvement work via their asset management plan and delegated budget. Many schools successfully self-deliver upgrade programmes by phasing the works.
Schools have delegated authority, responsibility and a duty of care for their site and have revenue funding (and a small amount of capital) which is delegated via the dedicated schools grant and the Devolved Formula Capital to discharge repairs and maintenance. As a consequence HCC has no revenue funding to support schools. Grant funding for capital repairs can be obtained through the business case process.
Premises and estate management
The Government has produced guidance on estate management which contains useful advice on policies, processes and documents that schools, academies and multi-academy trusts should consider when managing their estates.
Gov.UK: Good estate management for schools
There is also information contained on the Grid in Asset Management and Maintenance
In relation to maintained schools, Hertfordshire County Council is the Landowner and the Estates Team are the first point of contact for questions relating to land and boundaries. All estate queries should be sent in the first instance to Herts.Property@hertfordshire.gov.uk.
Schools are able to access site plans on the Corporate Property Database and/or can contact Terrier@hertfordshire.gov.uk for support with boundary queries.
Grounds maintenance is generally the responsibility of the school and includes the management of any trees on the school site. An occupier of land where a tree stands has responsibilities under the law. Further information is available from the ESFA web site.
Gov.UK: Good estate management for schools
Some trees may be within land managed by HCC, either as part of Rural Estates or land which is let, for example, as a recreation ground. If you are unsure about ownership, please send as much detail as possible to Herts.Property@hertfordshire.gov.uk.
Animal remains are a Health & Safety issue dealt with by most District Councils under Environmental Health/Pest Control.
When a Community School proposes making building changes to its school premises, the process for the Landowner’s Approval should be followed.
Please email all requests with reference to changes planned for Community School buildings to Herts.Property@hertfordshire.gov.uk
HCC does not provide an emergency response service and therefore all schools are encouraged to retain the services of a property consultant to support them in the event of a critical incident. HCC’s Property Consultancy framework (Lot 12) can be used to engage with an appropriately qualified consultant.
It is the individual school’s responsibility to make the site safe, put in place the necessary contractual arrangements for temporary solutions and undertake repairs as required. Responsibility for effectively managing and maintaining school buildings lies with the school and is the responsibility of the Governing Body. All schools are advised to have in place procedures for dealing with property related emergencies.
Documents and plans
All construction works that are subject to CDM Regulations require the contractor/consultant to produce a Health and Safety (H&S) File for the client. Part of this file - the O&M manual - will contain essential information about operating, cleaning and maintaining the structure, materials used and any equipment which has been installed. It may also contain statutory certification, manufacturers’ instructions and warranties.
The specific documents included will depend on the scale and type of project. They provide important information about how the work was done and how individual components should be operated and maintained. These include
- copies of warranties and guarantees
- services plans, as-installed and as-built drawings (where the project involves a new build or extension)
- construction methods and materials summary
- specific H&S issues (eg. hazardous materials used)
- structural calculations
- statutory approvals (planning consent, building regulations)
- site survey and investigation reports
- asbestos reports and records
- generic maintenance procedures for equipment and/or links to specific manufacturer information and contact details
- manufacturer schedules and spares list
- test certificates and commissioning data linked to the equipment
- user manuals for all installed equipment
If you have had capital works done, for example an extension, new boiler or replacement windows, the school will have received a copy of the O&M manual when the handover meeting took place at the end of the project.
These are very important documents which should be kept safe and accessible to anyone who needs to carry out maintenance or replace equipment. This includes applicable warranties or guarantees.In the past schools commonly received this information in hard copy format, while it is now more likely to be supplied in electronic format on a disc or memory stick.(HCC retains an electronic copy of the O&M manual for more recent works funded and managed via the Building Management Team.
We may therefore be able to assist schools with accessing information in some cases. Please contact SchoolsDCD@hertfordshire.gov.uk to enquire.
Some plans and drawings are held on the Corporate Property Database (CPD) which is currently provided online via TF Cloud. Maintained schools have access to information held on the CPD about their site and can log in with their user details at:
If you experience any problems with access to the database or locating plans, please contact the Property Information & Intelligence Unit for assistance: PIIU@hertfordshire.gov.uk.
If you have had capital works done recently e.g. an extension or replacement windows, then, depending on the type of work done, you may have some plans or drawings in the Operation and Maintenance manual provided to you at the completion of the works.We may be able to source some historical project plans and drawings from the limited archive that we hold here at HCC.
Please contact us at SchoolsDCD@hertfordshire.gov.uk with details of the information that you are looking for.
Asbestos management surveys for all maintained schools are held on the Corporate Property Database (CPD). All maintained schools have access to information held on the CPD about their site and can log in with their user details at:
If you experience any problems with access to the database or locating plans, please contact the Property Information & Intelligence Unit for assistance: PIIU@hertfordshire.gov.uk
.It is a legal requirement that the asbestos register is kept up to date and any asbestos information associated with works taking place at the school must be sent to HCC via asbestos@hertfordshire.gov.uk on project completion.
(Note: There is a process for information and documentation held on the CPD to be transferred to schools which convert to academy. This will occur after conversion and access to the CPD will be available until such time as the information has been transferred.)
Surveys
The CDC programme is the successor to the Property Data Survey (PDS) and collects detailed condition, contextual and building management data to provide Central Government with an evidence base which to support delivery of education capital policy. It is one of the biggest condition data collection exercises in the UK public sector, collecting data on 22,000 educational establishments. More information is available on the CDC website:
Gov.UK: Condition data collection programme
Schools will be contacted by the ESFA when their survey report is ready. If you have problems accessing your report, please contact the ESFA directly, using the email address ESFA.CDCPROGRAMME@education.gov.uk.
CDC surveys can provide schools with useful information but do not constitute a comprehensive condition report for any individual establishment. Used in isolation, they are not suitable for effective asset management planning or to support capital works funding applications.
November 2020 update
Condition Data Collection 2
The CDC1 programme ran from 2017 to 2019. CDC1 visited every government funded school in England and collected information about the condition and management of school buildings. The data collected provided a robust evidence base to enable the Department for Education to target capital investment in the school estate to where it is most needed, and to make the case for further capital funding for school buildings.
To provide a credible picture of changing investment needs over time, we need to refresh that data. We plan to run a successor programme - CDC2 - from 2021 to 2026. CDC2 will collect similar information to CDC1 and will follow a similar process, with improvements based on feedback from CDC1, including how and when we share the data collected with schools and responsible bodies.
We know there will be challenges visiting schools over the coming months and beyond during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and want to work closely with local authorities, multi-academy trusts and dioceses to ensure we collect a complete condition dataset on all schools. We are monitoring the situation closely and will keep you informed of progress directly and via the ‘ESFA Update’ bulletins. We will also be publishing guidance on CDC2 on gov.uk early in 2021.
School tranche lists for CDC2
The provisional list of all schools to be visited under CDC2 and when they are to be visited can be viewed below:
Schools intending to submit a bid for capital works funding will require a condition survey to support their business case. A condition survey provides objective information about the condition of the asset. It uses a common grading system and enables fair comparison across sites and effective prioritisation.
Please note that unfortunately CDC survey reports do not contain sufficient information to be accepted as condition surveys in support of a business case for capital works funding.For more guidance on condition surveys:
HCC does not recommend any specific suppliers. However, schools are entitled to use the HCC Property Frameworks which provide lists of contractors and consultants who have been vetted and from whom we procure a large proportion of property services. It is the school’s responsibility to engage and contract direct with any of the companies on the list.
Benefits of using framework companies include:
- the requirements for works and services have been advertised by HCC, capable suppliers identified and an initial level of due diligence carried out on the companies listed
- consultants and contractors are familiar with the risks and requirements of working in schools
- the companies in each Lot have been selected because they provide particular services, which can make finding specialists and comparing prices easier
- these suppliers are monitored by HCC for the lifetime of the Framework to check their financial viability, Health & Safety record and insurance levels are maintained.
It is recommended that schools retain the services of a property partner to support them in maintaining their property assets and dealing with property emergencies.
The National Register of Access Consultants (NRAC) is an independent UK wide accreditation service for individuals who provide access consultancy and access auditor services. It was set up with government backing to provide a single source for organisations seeking competent advice in relation to inclusive environments and accessibility.