WIREDGOV

Acoustic testing will be a contractual requirement for all Building Schools for the Future projects in England, Children’s Minister Delyth Morgan announced today.

It will mean that no funding will be signed off for a BSF secondary school building project without a commitment to having the £6000 acoustic test.

It is part of a package of measures to improve acoustics in schools and ensure that all children, particularly those with hearing difficulties, have access to a learning environment which enables them to reach their full potential.

It comes on top of the Minimum Design Standard being brought into the BSF programme to strengthen the design quality which ministers announced in May.

The Standard sees all proposed designs for BSF sample schools assessed by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment's schools design expert panel.

Only designs graded as ‘very good’ or ‘pass’ will be able to proceed through procurement and into construction - designs graded ‘unsatisfactory’ or ‘poor’ at their final review will be stopped.

In a Written Ministerial Statement laid before Parliament today Baroness Morgan said:

“Good acoustics are essential to a successful learning environment for all children, particularly for those with special hearing requirements, and my Department works hard to achieve this, in partnership with other government departments such as Communities and Local Government (CLG) and with the National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS). I should place on record my appreciation to the NDCS for their commitment to breaking down the barriers faced by deaf children.

“To continue our drive for improvement, I am announcing a package of measures designed to ensure that school buildings have good acoustics and that the needs of those with special hearing requirements are met.

“My Department and Communities and Local Government (CLG) are taking a number of actions to improve acoustics in schools. These include:

• Partnerships For Schools (PFS) will ensure, through the Approvals Process, that all future funding for Building Schools for the Future (BSF) schools will not be approved without contractual commitment to meeting appropriate standards through acoustic test certification.
• In Local Authorities where schools have already been constructed with BSF funding, a certificate of compliance with acoustic standards for the most recently funded school, or plan demonstrating how that will be achieved, will be required before further funding is released to that LA.
• My Department will publish a design practice note for clients by December 2010, emphasising the importance of good acoustics, including a strong recommendation for testing and reminding them of funding conditions under the BSF programme that I set out earlier in this statement.
• My Department and CLG will write jointly to every building control body (BCB) in England and Wales, reminding them of the importance of acoustics in all schools, including primary schools, especially for pupils with impaired hearing. We will also remind Building Control Bodies that where acoustic testing is being carried out to satisfy requirements to secure funding, they should use this data to assess compliance with the regulations.
• Where proposals are being considered to adopt alternative performance standards to those set out in Building Bulletin 93, we will also ask BCBs to alert applicants to the latest guidance on acoustics and ask them not to approve alternative performance standards unless a full and proper case has been made in accordance with Building Bulletin 93.  

• Produce an evaluation of the acoustic environment of up to 10 schools and disseminate the lessons learnt by March 2010; and
• Widen the scope of our Spaces for Personalised Learning project to include a detailed consideration of acoustics in innovative learning spaces with immediate effect.
• Go out to public consultation during 2010 on an updated version of Building Bulletin 93: Acoustic design of Schools: A Design Guide, the key document for ensuring good acoustic standards in schools. This will take on board improvements already proposed following extensive stakeholder consultation, as well as any findings from the investigatory work we will carry out.

“CLG is due to commence an evaluation of Part E of the Building Regulations later this year. This is the first stage of a full review of Part E that could lead to revised regulations and guidance in 2013. The NDCS will be asked to contribute to this process and my Department will be fully involved on any aspects relating to schools to ensure consistency with my Department’s guidance.

“Finally, in the light of the major study that the NDCS has undertaken into recent testing in schools, I have asked DCSF officials to work with CLG officials to examine the implications of introducing mandatory acoustic testing in all new schools. I have asked for this advice by June 2010. Depending on the outcome of this work, it would be our intention to issue a formal consultation on the question of mandatory testing.”

Editor's Notes
This press notice relates to 'England'
1. PfS is the government’s delivery agent for the full suite of capital investment programmes into schools, helping ensure that taxpayers get the best value from every education pound spent.

2. Building Schools for the Future is the largest capital investment programme for 50 years that will provide world-class teaching and learning environments for all pupils, teachers and communities in England. Over the lifetime of the programme, BSF will help improve the life chances of 3.3m children every year.

3. Nearly a third of all secondary schools in England – in 85 local authorities across England - are now involved in the BSF programme.

4. Earlier this year the DCSF, PfS and CABE launched a new Minimum Design Standard for schools – a first for any public sector building programme. The Minimum Design Standard (MDS) has the twin aims of encouraging local authorities, architects and contractors to strive for the highest standards in transformational school design, whilst also putting in place measures to stop unsatisfactory designs from proceeding into construction.

5. The National Audit Office report into BSF, published in February 2009, stated that the programme is now being well managed and that PfS is keeping costs under control. It added: BSF schools have been built to a higher specification and space standards than previous schools.

Contact Details
Public Enquiries 0870 000 2288, info@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk
Journalists, please contact the Newdesk on 020 7925 6789

Press Notice 2009/0191