Consider the Australians

It may be premature to talk about green shoots, but there are some areas where we can continue to be optimistic. In particular, we’re squaring up well when we look at what our colleagues are doing with learning environments around the world. Despite the serious impact of cuts in college work, primary and secondary schools are making progress and offering communities new places for our children to learn and our teachers to teach – as well as generating much needed work for construction.

In Australia, the government is putting $A15bn (about £7bn) into renewing schools across the country. Although this has been partly in response to the economic squeeze, the benefits are much wider. Last year I visited a number of these schools, as well as meeting a wide range of professionals. Exchanging experiences and views on our respective building programmes, there were many common themes.

Sustainability came out high on the agenda, but in its broadest sense – not only environmental, but also social and community-focused sustainability – ensuring we get the best out of a school for the community at large. There’s the same worries (and pragmatism) about using private finance, and concerns about procurement processes, echoing the concerns of the House of Commons’ Public Accounts Committee, which published its report on Building Schools for the Future earlier this month. There’s a determination there, as here, to build schools that are functional, adaptable and inspirational.

I was struck by some of the examples of joint working and engagement with staff and pupils, as well as people from the local area. Some of the schools glowed with the knowledge of the people who designed them, and showed a real respect for the people who used them.

Wooranna Park primary school in Melbourne used an extensive participation process with 100 pupils and their teachers. The result is a fantastic internal space that melds together general learning areas with specialist facilities. Elsewhere, the beautiful Westbourne Grammar won a sustainability award for its use of natural ventilation, and Malvern Valley school used its rebuilding project as a springboard to form part of a community hub with other public buildings.

As we look ahead to an uncertain future, and a general election in the next 12 months, the industry is going to have to work hard to ensure that investment in schools continues

We need to continue that approach here in the UK. Central to this is building on work around post-occupancy evaluation, looking not just at how well a building functions, but joining this up with the experiences of real people so we develop world-class spaces that bring about real change for young people in an increasingly competitive economy.

We’ve seen some great examples being showcased as part of National School Environments Week, which finishes today. A key element of the week, and our Great Schools Inquiry and Commission, is to highlight our successes in the school design and construction arena, and share out the knowledge and good practice.

Compared with much of the rest of the world, we’re ahead of the curve. We have some breathtaking schools that we can all be proud of. And although buildings can’t solve all of society’s ills, nor indeed the economic crisis, they can make a contribution to the quality of people’s lives.

As we look ahead to an uncertain future, and a general election in the next 12 months, the industry is going to have to work hard to demonstrate value, integrity and the impact of its work. This will help convince government to ensure that investment in our schools infrastructure continues to be at the forefront of public sector spending.