£3bn Schools Infrastructure Investment

Commitment: Invest £3 billion in school buildings and education infrastructure as part of the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy.

Owner: HMT / DfE

Target date: Within 10-year strategy period (2024/25 to 2034/35)

Metric: Capital investment deployed; schools rebuilt or substantially refurbished.

Status: active

Context

The £3bn school infrastructure commitment covers:

• RAAC (reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete) remediation — a major urgent priority after 2023 emergency closure of RAAC schools
• Schools rebuilding programme (prioritised list of schools with worst condition estates)
• New school places to serve growing communities (linked to housing growth targets)

Connection to housing

New housing developments require new school places. The 1.5 million homes target generates demand for school places in growth areas — school infrastructure investment must be spatially aligned with housing delivery plans.

Key risk

The RAAC remediation programme adds urgent pressure to the school capital programme, potentially competing for funding with planned rebuilds and new places. This could affect the pacing of schools investment within the £3bn envelope.