Scotland's teachers have sent a clear message that they are extremely concerned about the quality of newly built and refurbished schools and the ways in which this will affect teaching and learning. Many teachers believe that they have not been properly consulted on the refurbishment / new build process and that this lack of consultation has led to schools which may not provide adequate facilities fit for the delivery of a 21st century education for Scottish school pupils.

Only 27% of teachers feel that their comments during consultation had any impact on the plans for their school. And only 30% of teachers believed that their new or refurbished school provides good value for money.

The findings come as part of a national survey of new-build / refurbished schools, carried out by the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS). Every newly built and refurbished school in Scotland was sent a questionnaire asking for their opinions on the planning and consultation processes and the completed school. The majority of schools surveyed have been developed under Public-Private Partnership (PPP) schemes or Private Finance Initiative (PFI) schemes, as this is the finance option of choice for the Scottish Executive and most local authorities for major building projects.

Announcing the survey findings from Edinburgh, EIS General Secretary Ronnie Smith thanked the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland for their assistance with the preparation and analysis of the survey. Mr Smith said, "The results of our survey clearly show that there is acute concern amongst teachers over the quality of facilities delivered through PPP and PFI schemes. The main concern for teachers is the complete lack of meaningful consultation or input at the design stage of new school facilities. Teachers are essentially questioning the value of building schools without asking for the input of the people who will work in those schools every day. Teachers are also asking questions about the value for money these new schools provide. This is a concern which the EIS has long shared in relation to PPP/PFI schemes and also one of the reasons that we are opposed in principle to such schemes - they simply do not provide good value for money to the public purse in the long term."

Mr Smith added, "The main focus of any school build or refurbishment should be to deliver the best possible facilities for pupils and teachers in order to support effective teaching and learning. Sadly, the results of our survey indicate that teachers do not feel that this is happening. This is a missed opportunity. It is vital that teachers are fully involved in the process in order to ensure facilities and schools fit for their purpose and the needs of our young people."

Mr Smith did also highlight some more positive feedback from teachers - "The better news is that 72% of teachers who responded did feel positive about the impact that their new or refurbished school had on teaching and learning. Also, over half of respondents (53%) felt that their new school would be able to adapt to future developments such as smaller class sizes, while over two thirds (67%) were generally positive about the new PE facilities available for pupils within their school."

Sebastian Tombs, the Chief Executive of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland, said, "The EIS is to be congratulated on undertaking this survey - and its members thanked for responding honestly. The report's conclusions reinforce messages which the RIAS has been making consistently for years: the appropriate involvement of all stakeholders to develop the brief and contribute to the final solutions is absolutely vital if success in new school design is to be achieved consistently."

"Teachers and pupils, janitors and parents need to be able to participate, not merely 'be consulted'. In too many cases, it seems, even consultation was very limited. Some of the more unhappy quotes indicate a process which has been truncated, where conversations on educational outcomes have not been allowed, and where management and maintenance roles have not been sorted out. Schools need to be durable and sturdy if they are to survive, as well as good places to enhance teaching and learning."

Mr Tombs added, "Much more must be done to rectify these limitations - and soon. Too much has already been spent which is not considered to be value for money. We must maximise the chances for giving our children's education our very best shot. The future depends on it."

Ronnie Smith added that the issues emerging from the survey would be raised directly with the Scottish Executive and with local authorities. Copies of the report will be sent to the Scottish Executive and to local authorities and will be made available to schools.