The SEMS return opens this month
If you follow this newsletter, you already know what the School Estate Management Standards annual return is — we've cov …
Allergy safety is law this term. Here's the two-list version.
As you know, this term brought the change the sector has been working towards since 2021. The measures widely known as B …
Before the Gates Open: 10 Checks Worth Making This Week
Most site teams will already have the routine jobs covered. The more useful question this week is: what can go wrong whe …
Your trust has to explain how the money moves. Estates might be the awkward bit.
From 1 October 2026, every multi-academy trust in England has to publish a new summary statement of its financial arrang …
Podcast: 31 Deaths from Falls 2025/26 | Are Your Work at Height Procedures Adequate?
This week’s Let’s Talk Premises asks:
Work at height: the school estate blind spot
By one important measure, work in Great Britain is safer than it has been for decades.
The Autumn Return: Now We Know
Back in June, I published a piece about the SEMS Annual Return with an honest caveat baked into the title: there was sti …
Your Energy Supplier May Be Fine. Your Contract Isn't.
An academy trust could be perfectly satisfied with its energy supplier and still have a problem after September. Under t …
GEMS telecoms update: what schools and trusts need to know
On 3 July 2026, the Department for Education updated its Good estate management for schools guidance with revised inform …
£314m Is Leaving School Capital. That's Not The Real Story
Somewhere inside the Department for Education's £31.4 billion capital budget, £314 million is being quietly redirected. …
