Applications have opened for the government’s post-16 and construction capacity funding grants, as the Department for Education (DfE) has promised a “decade of national renewal” through a new education estates strategy.
The government has budgeted £570 million for post-16 capital investment, between 2026-27 and 2029-30, including both capacity and construction skills-focused funds.
A total of £287 million from this pot will be contracted nationally by the Department for Education and opened for bids yesterday from colleges, designated institutions and 16 to 19 academies in non-devolved areas.
Meanwhile, the government has also published its national education estates strategy, which includes a new renewal and retrofit programme worth an extra £710 million between 2026 and 2030.
The new strategy pledges to give colleges greater long-term certainty on capital investment and to reduce competitive bidding through more regular data sharing with the DfE.
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said the plan will bring an end to colleges and schools being forced to “patch and mend” buildings that have already deteriorated.
She added: “This is about more than buildings – it’s about breaking down barriers to opportunity. Every child deserves to learn in a safe, accessible environment, with the right facilities to meet their needs and help them thrive.”
The FE sector is facing a population bulge in 16 to 18 students, with numbers estimated to have swollen by 230,000, or 13 per cent, between 2017 and 2024 and to rise by another five per cent, or 110,000, in 2028.
Details of the capacity funding were welcomed by Julian Gravatt, deputy chief executive at the Association of Colleges, who said: “Colleges across the country have the expertise and ambition to deliver large numbers of quality courses in high-demand areas like construction, but over the past few years have struggled with the funding and resource to do so, with some having to turn potential students away.
“The £570 million budget for capital projects will go a long way to address the issue, ensuring colleges can expand their facilities.”
Capacity funds
DfE guidance published yesterday, which applies to non-devolved areas, sets out its expectations for bidding for both £191 million in post-16 capacity funding and £96 million in construction skills capacity funding.
The amounts available from individual bidders both funds are at least £250,000 and at most £5 million, although this could be higher “where there is sufficient evidence of need”.
A total of 18 mayoral combined authorities and councils with devolution deals will separately receive £184 million in post-16 capacity funding and £99 million for construction skills capacity funding. However, the Greater London Authority has not been awarded any funding for post-16 capacity.
To help with applications to the national pot, the DfE also published Office for National Statistics projections for non-devolved areas showing that in peak years, usually 2028 or 2029, some local authorities are expecting 16 to 17-year-old population growth of up to 19 per cent, or 900 people, per year.
Overall, the funding plans have been welcomed by the college sector, with Sixth Form College Association (SFCA) deputy chief executive James Kewin saying many of his members are “bursting at the seams”.
He added: “These new funds are very welcome and we expect them to be heavily oversubscribed.
“It remains to be seen how the funds operate in devolved areas – we hope that strategic authorities ensure that all providers types have the opportunity to create additional places as soon as possible.”
It follows the DfE’s release of £10 million in emergency post-16 capacity funding to both the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Leeds City Council last year, which is forecast to create around 9,000 extra college places once projects such as leasing buildings and classroom refurbishments are complete.
How to win
Bidders to the DfE’s post-16 capacity fund must show their projects are needed “as a direct result” of demographic increases in learners and be designed to accommodate at least 31 additional 16 to 19 year-old learners.
The three “likely” types of project that will win funding are those that reconfigure the estate, increase size temporarily through leasing or purchases, or building or buying new space.
Permanent new build projects or land purchase projects are “unlikely” to meet spend deadlines or value for money requirements due to the “short term nature” of the population budge and risk of creating “surplus” post-16 places.
Construction capacity funding comes with several conditions including securing employer support and winning bids being for a designated construction technical excellence college or one of their “spoke” collaborators.
They must also demonstrate that projects will address construction waiting lists, accommodate learners from 2026 onwards, and that there are “no alternative solutions”.
Applications opened on February 10 and close on April 17, with outcome notifications in July.
New national strategy
The DfE’s 10-year national estates strategy promises to “turn the page on years of neglect” through a new retrofit and renewal programme, a national standard for FE colleges and improved data collection.
Between 2026 and 2030, the £710 million retrofit and renewal programme will aim to help colleges and schools with “significant condition projects”, resilience to climate change, access to nature and decarbonising the estate.
A new digital service ‘manage your education estate’ will be launched this month that will bring together estates guidance, data, and communication with the department.
The department will develop an estate management standard for FE colleges by summer this year and pilot increased data collection and sharing that will help target future funding “without the need for full bids”.
Other plans include “pathfinder” pilots of more flexible use of surplus spaces on the education estate and private finance investment in solar and energy efficiency.
Your thoughts