Today’s reports from the National Audit Office (NAO) lay bare the challenges that schools and trusts are facing to keep pupils and staff safe: 700,000 pupils in buildings that need replacing and a £3 billion a year shortfall in funding, which means that number is likely to keep getting bigger.

These figures are not some outlandish claim. They are the Department for Education’s own calculations. In 2020, the department said funding of £5.3 billion a year was needed to maintain schools and mitigate the most serious risks of building failure.

The Treasury allocated an average of £3.1 billion annually. The average actually spent over recent years was £2.3 billion - less than half what the department itself says is necessary.

Lightweight concrete risk of real concern

It is a shocking state of affairs and reflects what Confederation of School Trusts members have been telling us for some time, and what we, in turn, have been driving home in our discussions with the DfE.

We welcome the 500 new schools over 10 years, but this touches just 2 per cent of the schools in England - it would take over 430 years to renew every school on that timetable.

That leaves tens of thousands of school buildings getting gradually worse, today and for the foreseeable future.

The NAO report gives particular focus to concerns about reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) - a type of lightweight concrete panel used in many public buildings from the 1960s, one that is now seen as a serious risk.

To its credit, the department is now trying hard to address this, and some trusts say they are being supported well where school buildings have had to close - although we need clarity on who pays for alternative arrangements when schools have to shut.

Schools must be safe for all children

It is not in any way acceptable that we have schools in England that are potentially unsafe for children and staff. It is a fundamental duty of the state to provide a school estate that is safe and fit for purpose.

While we recognise that this represents a relatively small number of schools, it remains unacceptable to put any child or any member of staff in public service at risk.

Large numbers of school trusts have to bid for capital spending through the underfunded and seemingly capricious Condition Improvement Fund process.

Time and money are wasted on preparing bids that end up being rejected despite pressing needs; more funds are then spent on sticking-plaster solutions to fix roofs, boilers and more that need total renewal.

We have an annual process for what needs to be strategic decisions.

Larger trusts and local authorities have more control through direct school condition allocation grants, where they are given a lump sum to spend at schools they are responsible for, but, again, these are only confirmed on a yearly basis. There is little opportunity to plan ahead.

Better funding systems are needed

Our trusts tell us - and the department’s own calculations show - that neither process is adequately funded. Trusts need secure, reliable and substantial funding programmes so they can invest in their buildings, creating surroundings that inspire learning.

Trusts also want to reduce their carbon footprint, to try to safeguard the future of the pupils we are educating. This can also save money in the long term, particularly at a time of high energy costs.

Last year, schools received a surprise share of £500 million to support energy efficiency, but trusts tell us that other green government funding schemes are too contradictory and complicated to benefit from, despite their desire to contribute to the country reaching net zero.

Schools achieved many miraculous things during the pandemic, with remote learning rapidly showing its worth. But schools as places where pupils and teachers come together - and bring whole communities together - need buildings fit for the purpose.

The state has a responsibility and a duty to act now. No ifs and no buts.

Capital funding needs a fundamental rethink - not just the amount of funding but how it is delivered, with predictable, multi-year funding that helps schools and trusts plan as mature, responsible organisations.

Leora Cruddas is the chief executive of the Confederation of School Trusts