Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools in Harlow have received funding from the (a) Condition Improvement Fund scheme and (b) £560 million of capital funding for school repairs and upgrades announced by the Prime Minister on 29 June 2020.

Schools and those responsible for school buildings receive condition funding through different routes depending on their size and type. Local authorities, larger multi-academy trusts (MATs) and large voluntary aided school bodies, such as dioceses, receive a School Condition Allocation (SCA) to invest in priorities across the schools for which they are responsible. Smaller or stand-alone academy trusts, other voluntary aided schools and sixth form colleges are able to bid to the Condition Improvement Fund (CIF). All schools are also allocated devolved formula capital to spend on small projects that meet their own priorities.

In financial year 2020-21, an additional £560 million of funding was allocated through SCAs and CIF, on top of over £1.4 billion in condition funding already committed this year. Of the £560 million, £182 million was allocated through CIF.

Four schools in Harlow initially benefitted from four projects being funded through CIF in 2020-21. A further three schools and three projects were successful, following the announcement of the additional funding, bringing the total to seven schools and seven projects.

As SCA funding is paid to bodies that span constituency boundaries, and decisions on investing in individual schools are taken at a local level, it is not possible to confirm how much SCA has been invested in schools in Harlow in 2020-21.

In 2020-21, Essex local authority was allocated £9,689,827 in SCA, including £3,072,985 from the additional £560 million to invest in its maintained schools, including schools in Harlow. Large MATs and large voluntary aided school bodies also received additional SCA funding from the £560 million to invest in schools for which they are responsible.

We have allocated £9.5 billion in condition funding since 2015 to maintain and improve school buildings, including the additional £560 million in the financial year 2020-21.

Capital allocations and annual CIF outcomes are published on GOV.UK.