Gordon's new classrooms 'not fit for lessons'

Gordon Brown's £45 billion plan to rebuild England's schools is in danger of producing classrooms which are not fit for lessons, a report warned today.

Currently, most school buildings date back to before the era of computers and represent the past, not the future, the study said.

Children and teachers should be involved in designing new buildings, according to the report by the British Council for School Environments (BCSE) and the British Educational Suppliers Association.

Ty Goddard, director of the BCSE, said: "We need a process that will meet the needs of the pupils, teachers and communities.

"School building investment opens the door to a fantastic opportunity to transform our education system.

"If we squander it, we risk ending up with new schools that won't work."

The report said: "If we do not spend time to consider these core principles, there is a real danger that the benefits of this massive investment will be wasted.

"We will be left with school buildings which are not fit for purpose and may be obsolete even before they are occupied."

The study said schools in the future would need to have radically different designs.

They should include:

• More spaces where children can learn through computer technology.

• More "social spaces" in schools where pupils can follow independent study in a less formal environment and learn "the importance of social interaction".

• Better environmental standards of buildings to cut emissions.

The Government agency which is delivering the school rebuilding programme said the initiative was "unprecedented in scale and vision".

Tim Byles, chief executive of Partnerships for Schools, said: "Partnerships for Schools is resolutely focused on ensuring that Building Schools for the Future delivers learning environments that are not just fit for purpose but fit for generations to come.

"It is for this reason that educational transformation sits at the very heart of the programme and we continue to underscore the importance of teachers and learners in forming the design of these new and refurbished schools."

He said that the initiative had already been changed to bring about improvements. "Continuous improvements is key to ensuring that together we secure the best outcomes for young people."

Responding to the report, a spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills said: "Schools are not just about classrooms - they are playing an increasingly important role in their communities, with wraparound facilities.

"That's why we make sure all new schools can adapt to the needs of future generations.

"Good, flexible, sustainable, value-for-money design is at the heart of our once-in-a-generation investment to transform secondary education.

"We are working with many organisations, including BCSE, to ensure high design standards for teaching and learning, make our procurement and planning processes even better, and to equip headteachers and local authorities with the vision and skills to plan for the future."