Building schools for the future - Unison

10
BUILDING SCHOOLS FOR THE FUTURE
Section 2 –
How BSF works
1. Educational vision
While BSF is primarily about new construction and capital investment in the secondary school estate, it
is intended to act as a catalyst for effecting change in educational outcomes across England.
BSF starts with the local authority setting out its vision for education in its area, including aspirations
for improved educational outcomes. The BSF programme is intended to be flexible enough to be
developed and refined in the context of the educational vision for a particular area.
Local authorities have developed Learning Centres as part of their response to BSF. In Knowsley sites
are planned to include educational psychologist services, alongside NHS Primary Care Trust services
sited with the newly built schools.
Specific issues which could be considered under the education vision for an area could include:
n underperformance and underachievement
n curriculum innovation
n social Inclusion
n children’s services, extended and full service schools
n pupil behaviour
n 14 – 19 education
n school organisation
n specialist schools
n academies (see section 10 below)
n information and Communications Technology (ICT)
n workforce reform and remodelling
Action point 4
Branches should take the opportunity to put staff at the heart of the education vision. BSF
should tie in with other initiatives such as school remodelling and staffing reviews, school
meals transformation and extended schools. Ensuring that staff are trained and rewarded for
new responsibilities should be part of the process.
Action point 5
Staff other than those in schools may be affected by the BSF programme and should be
consulted and involved where necessary. Talks with BSF partners, like architects, offer the
opportunity to involve our members in design of buildings and services.