Welsh schools repair backlog tops £785m

Schools in Wales face a repairs backlog of more than £785m.

And some councils claim they can only afford essential safety work..

The shock findings are contained in research by the Welsh edition of the Times Educational Supplement which claims there is a backlog of repairs in more than half of all Welsh local authorities. Buildings in one in five secondary schools are also below standard.

The survey found the repairs needed in 14 of Wales' 22 local authorities totalled £500m.

The other eight authorities did not contribute to the research but, by averaging out the figures, TES Cymru has estimated the total bill for Wales is £785m.

REPAIRS BACKLOG
Carmarthenshire: £20m
Gwynedd: £25m
Newport: £25m

Pembrokeshire: £25m
Denbighshire: £37m
Rhondda Cynon Taf: £55m
Powys: £60m
Cardiff: £67m
Vale of Glamorgan: £87m
Wrexham: £90m
Monmouthshire: £130m

A Welsh Assembly Government spokesperson said: "We were committed to invest £560m over the lifetime of this assembly to improve school buildings.

"This commitment has been more than met with investment already standing at £629m. Over the autumn we will be reviewing the position with each authority against the 2010 target."