Schools and colleges are to receive £500 million of extra capital funding to improve energy efficiency, the Government has announced.

The money – which will be automatically allocated without the need to bid – is intended to help them save money in the face of crippling fuel bills, but will also increase resilience for the future by making them more energy efficient.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said schools and colleges will be allocated at least £10,000 each this financial year, with further funding in proportion to size.

Primary schools will receive an average of £16,000 and secondary schools an average of £42,000. An average group of FE colleges will receive £290,000.

Schools and colleges can decide how best to invest the capital funding. Surveyors to Education (S2e) has a team of qualified chartered surveyors able to advise on how school leaders can the very best value for money.

How to reduce energy use and cut bills

The Department for Education has published guidance on what it calls sensible steps for reducing energy use and small-scale works to improve energy efficiency – ideas which can be implemented quickly to make a difference through the colder months and beyond.

This includes:

1.  Conduct an energy audit to identify energy usage and target where to save energy.

2. Understand that several factors can affect how much energy a building uses, from its condition, to energy efficiency of ICT and education equipment, to catering requirements.

3. Carry out spot checks by the site premises manager or the senior leadership team, headteacher or eco club to encourage users to change their behaviour, such as switching off lights and equipment in empty rooms.

4. Discuss energy efficiency in staff meetings, assemblies and lessons.

5. Set temperatures at 18°C for parts of the building where there is a normal level of activity, such as classrooms and offices (but 21°C for areas where the occupants are inactive or sick).

   The guidance notes: “Reducing the temperature in a building by 1ºC can save 5% to 10% of your annual heating bill. Operating the heating system for an hour less each day can save a similar amount.”

6. Turn off water heaters at the mains during evenings, weekends and holidays.

7. Replace inefficient lights (such as fluorescents) with LED lights, alongside movement and daylight sensors, to reduce energy consumption from lighting by over 84%.

8. Maximise the use of natural daylight by regularly cleaning all windows, skylights, transparent doors and lights.

9. Switch off electrical equipment such as computers, ICT devices and kitchen equipment when not in use, as long as continuous operation is not essential.

10. Ask for expert guidance on generating renewable energy on site through solar panels and wind turbines.

S2e is ready to carry out an audit of your site and advise on the best options for saving energy, reducing bills and cutting CO2 emissions.

Although the priority is investing in energy-efficiency measures, schools and colleges have discretion to spend the money on other projects if local circumstances dictate.

Summary of all funding

The £500 million has been broken down into £447 million for schools and sixth-form colleges and £53 million for Further Education colleges.

Ms Keegan said the extra funding was on top of £1.8 billion of capital funding already committed this financial year for improving the condition of school buildings. In addition, the School Rebuilding Programme will rebuild or refurbish buildings at 500 schools and sixth-form colleges over the next decade, she said. The allocations are on top of the £1.5 billion investment in upgrading the FE college estate through the FE Capital Transformation Programme, the more than £400m of capital funding provided so far for T-Levels providers, and a £150 million allocation of capital funding for colleges announced in November.

In addition, the Autumn Statement confirmed a net increase in the core schools budget of £2 billion in both 2023-24 and 2024-25, she said.

Schools and colleges can bid for funding for energy-efficiency projects through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme .

Schools, FE colleges and education providers are also benefitting from the Energy Bill Relief Scheme. This will reduce how much they need to spend on their energy, and give greater certainty over budgets over the winter months.

Click here for further information on the Government steps to reduce energy use, or get in touch to see how we can help reduce your energy use on tel: 0116 5070130 or email enquire@s2e.org.uk.