HC Deb 27 February 1990 vol 168 cc156-7W
19. Mr. Bradley

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is his latest estimate of outstanding repairs for schools in(a) England and (b) Wales; and if he will make a statement.

50. Mr. Barron

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is his estimate of outstanding repairs for schools in(a) England and (b) Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Alan Howarth

The 1987 report of the DES survey of school buildings estimated that the cost of implementing the main structural requirements related to the Education (School Premises) Regulations 1981 and the other physical requirements in primary and secondary schools in England was about £1.1 billion (although this estimate is subject to sampling error). This figure includes improvements to buildings as well as repairs. Since the survey substantial sums, both capital and current, have been, and continue to be, devoted to improving school premises. The repair of schools in Wales is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.