Nearly a quarter of all schools in Wales are in urgent need of maintenance work, as reported by Wales Online. The Senedd has revealed that there is a backlog of £93 million for urgent repairs in Welsh schools, with a total maintenance bill exceeding £500 million. This means that, on average, each council in Wales has a backlog of £24 million. Cefin Campbell, Plaid Cymru’s shadow education secretary, highlighted that 355 schools, which make up 24% of all schools in Wales, require urgent maintenance based on responses to freedom of information requests.
During a session at the Senedd on February 19, Mr. Campbell raised concerns about the state of schools in Torfaen, the constituency of the education secretary Lynne Neagle. He pointed out that 31 out of 32 schools in Torfaen are in need of urgent repairs. Mr. Campbell also mentioned that the Welsh Government has not taken responsibility for collecting this data centrally. In response, Ms. Neagle defended the government’s actions by announcing an additional £35 million for school and college repairs, with £20 million specifically earmarked for maintenance work.
Despite the additional funding, Mr. Campbell called for a nationwide survey to assess the condition of school buildings, arguing that the current allocation of funds will not be sufficient to address the estimated £500 million backlog. He criticised the Welsh Government for failing to provide a safe learning environment for pupils, which also impacts teachers professionally. Ms. Neagle, however, highlighted the government’s substantial investment in school buildings, amounting to nearly £2 billion since the latest programme began, excluding repair funds.
The debate continued with Mr. Campbell questioning the government’s funding priorities and suggesting a lack of awareness of the extent of the maintenance problem due to the absence of comprehensive data collection. Ms. Neagle reiterated the government’s commitment to investing in school infrastructure and maintaining a record of record amounts of funding. She challenged Mr. Campbell’s criticism by emphasizing the ongoing efforts to enhance school buildings and provide a conducive learning environment for students and teachers across Wales.
The discussion at the Senedd shed light on the challenges facing Welsh schools in terms of urgent maintenance needs. While the Welsh Government has allocated additional funding for repairs, concerns remain about the adequacy of the funding to address the substantial backlog of maintenance work. The call for a national survey to assess the condition of school buildings reflects the need for a comprehensive understanding of the extent of the problem to ensure effective prioritisation of resources. As the debate continues, the focus remains on enhancing the learning environment for students and supporting teachers in delivering quality education in Wales.