Contractors furious with 'late' BSF data

Angry contractors and council officials rejected Government data that lists nearly a third of schools under the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme as late.

Figures released by schools minister Jim Knight last week show that of 50 schools completed, 15 were delivered late - some by up to one year.

The 15 schools include three BSF schools in Bradford, built by Costain in jv with Ferrovial and Agroman, five schools in Manchester, delivered by Laing O'Rourke and Balfour Beatty and three in Solihull, built by BAM. According to the data released by the Department of Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), all 11 schools opened one year later than scheduled.

However contractors and councils insisted the schemes were delivered on time.

A Bradford City Council spokeswoman said: "We are completely stunned by these figures. The schools were scheduled to be built and opened by September 2008 and that schedule was met."

A Costain spokesman commented: "We were given the date and we met that date. The schools were completed and opened in September 2008, on the agreed date."

Solihull council also challenged the DCSF data. Council leader Ken Meesond said: "Our programme has been delivered on schedule, on budget and is completed, apart from the final phase at one school."

A BAM spokeswoman said: "All three schools in question delivered absolutely in accordance with the agreed dates."

A spokesman for the DFES said the finish dates were baseline targets for school openings which were agreed once the programme had started.

One contractor said: "DCSF should clarify that the build programmes on these schools came in on time. To release data that infers otherwise undermines all the hard work put in to deliver these schemes on time and to budget."