Budget to plough £320m into free schools

By Iain Withers2017-03-07T08:42:00+00:00

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Theresa May to stick to her guns and make selective schools part of the mix

Tomorrow’s Budget will plough £320m into the government’s free school programme and lay the groundwork for the next generation of grammar schools.

The free schools cash will be used to create 70,000 places in 140 schools, with selective education to be part of the mix if backed by MPs.

Construction industy leaders are calling for a cash injection into infrastructure, public construction and housebuilding tomorrow, to make up for a slowdown in private commercial construction.

The government has already trailed that there will be a shake-up of technical education in the Budget, with an investment of £500m a year into ‘T-levels - technical training for 16-19-year-olds in sectors including construction and engineering.

The government said it would ramp up training via technical routes to 900 hours - a 50% increase - and each course would offer a “high quality work placement”.

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