3.8 Local skills capacity to deliver BSF is a constraint on the programme. The scale of the task when renewing entire school estates and the complex delivery arrangements increases the burden on both schools and Local Authorities.
3.9 BSF requires significant time commitment from school leaders, who told us that it creates considerable pressure on their ability to carry out their other duties. Some Local Authorities provide their schools with additional resources to plan and procure BSF, including to cover teaching while leaders (Governors, Heads, Deputies, and other senior staff) commit time to BSF.
3.10 School leaders often find it difficult to work with and articulate their vision to bidders and architects because they have limited experience of building schools. The Department funds the National College of School Leadership, which provides leadership development opportunities for teachers and school leaders, to help schools at the early planning stage and to provide training to school leaders. But schools and Local Authorities have to manage the transition and early operational stages without central support. School leaders in our focus groups told us they often felt left to manage alone.
3.11 There is also a shortage of the commercial and project management skills needed by Local Authorities to deliver BSF. PfS found a lack of capacity to be a significant factor in the delay of the first projects. We found examples of:
■ a shortage of staff to undertake the range of activities expected, often leading to some key activities being given inadequate attention such as consultation with local communities;
■ reliance on consultants for key positions, leading to high costs, a lack of transfer of skills to the Local Authority and a lack of continuity; and
■ dependence on key individuals during procurement who did not continue after contract signature, causing a lack of continuity and implementation problems.
3.12 PfS and the Department have emphasised the importance of a Local Authority building its capacity before entering the programme. They prioritised Local Authorities within waves 4 to 6 using an assessment of how ready they were. PfS encourages Local Authorities to invite 4Ps, which advises Local Authorities on procurement and project management issues, to provide a skills audit and assessment of their readiness to deliver. Since 2007, the Department and PfS require Local Authorities to demonstrate that they have sufficient capacity to manage their BSF projects before allowing them to commence procurement.