Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she will update guidance titled ‘BB101: Ventilation, thermal comfort and indoor air quality 2018’ for the latest available technical standards.

All new department-delivered schools are designed and constructed to the department’s own school building standards. These standards include ventilation, thermal comfort and air quality and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/employers-requirements-part-b-generic-design-brief.

The standards are reviewed regularly and updated when necessary to meet industry best practice and any relevant legislation. An updated set of standards will be published in early 2026.

The department’s publication, ‘Building Bulletin 101: Guidelines on ventilation, thermal comfort and indoor air quality in schools’ (BB101), provides non-statutory guidance, and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/building-bulletin-101-ventilation-for-school-buildings.

The department reviews non-statutory guidance regularly and publishes updates only when necessary.