Government halts plans to rebuild 60 West Midlands school: Full list for Birmingham and Black Country

Jul 5 2010

PLANS to rebuild or refurbish almost 60 Midland schools have been delayed indefinitely after the Government scrapped a massive building plan.

They include 13 in Birmingham and six in the Black Country which had been given the go-ahead by the previous government – but have now been told there is no money to pay for the work.

The city schools where building work had been due to begin soon were Aston Manor, Bartley Green, Baskerville, Bordesley Green Girls, Cardinal Wiseman RC, Castle Vale, Golden Hillock, Hodge Hill, Holy Trinity RC, Holyhead, Kings Heath, Queensbury and Washwood Heath.

In Walsall, Alumwell Business and Enterprise College, Frank F Harrison Engineering College, Joseph Leckie Community Technology College, Pool Hayes Arts and Community School, Shire Oak Science College and The Streetly School were all due for rebuilds or revamps next year.

But all those projects were cancelled by Education Secretary Michael Gove as part of cuts to a £47 billion programme, called Rebuilding Schools for the Future, which was set up by the previous Labour government.

The Education Secretary also said he would discuss plans to build new academies in Birmingham with the council, before considering whether to scrap them too.

Those schools affected include Aston Engineering Academy, Birmingham Ormiston Academy, College High Academy, Harborne Hill Academy, Heartlands Academy, Sheldon Heath Academy, Shenley Court Academy and St Albans Academy.

Mr Gove said there simply wasn’t enough money to pay for the schools rebuilding programme.

He told MPs that Rebuilding Schools for the Future had led to “massive overspend, tragic delays, botched construction processes and needless bureaucracy”.

Labour announced its school building programme in 2003, but work has begun on just 11 schools in Birmingham. The city council had hoped to complete work on every school in the city by 2024, at a cost of £2.4 billion.

Birmingham City Council’s Children, Young People and Families boss, Coun Les Lawrence, warned the cuts could lead to job losses in the construction industry with companies facing the loss of work they had been banking on.

“We have received the statement and the list of schools,” he said.

“We will now have to consider the implications on a school-by-school basis to see if there is a way we can find alternative arrangements to proceed with the rebuilds.”

MP Steve McCabe (Lab Selly Oak) said: “My view is that this Coalition government is taking us back to the past.”