Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment her Department has made of the (a) condition and (b) efficiency of radiator-based heating systems in schools.

Responsible bodies (the relevant local authority, academy trust or voluntary-aided body) are responsible for the condition and efficiency of heating systems in their schools.

The department assesses the condition of the school estate through its Condition Data Collection (CDC) programme, which includes an assessment of the condition of heating systems. This is shared with responsible bodies and schools. This programme does not include an assessment of the efficiency of radiator-based heating systems. Further information on the current Condition Data Collection 2 (CDC2) programme and a report of the key findings of Condition Data Collection 1 (CDC1), can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/condition-data-collection-2-cdc2-programme#access-cdc2-reports. The full school-level data from CDC1 can be found here: https://depositedpapers.parliament.uk/depositedpaper/2285521/details.

The department also publishes non-statutory guidance on heating system selection as well as life cycle and maintenance in Building Bulletin 101: Guidelines on ventilation, thermal comfort and indoor air quality in schools, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/building-bulletin-101-ventilation-for-school-buildings.