Uses 
BSF Glossary
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| 14-19 Agenda | A key Government policy designed to provide secondary age, and older, pupils with a wider range of educational options, including vocational courses, than might traditionally have been available. An Authority’s Education Vision (see below) must set out how its BSF proposals will also meet the relevant elements of this policy, in partnership with other local providers, such as Further Education colleges. |
| 4ps | Public Private Partnership Programme – part of the Local Government Association (LGA), working with Local Authorities to develop their project teams in the pre-procurement phase. |
| Academies | Academies are all-ability independent schools established by sponsors from business, faith or voluntary groups working in partnership with central government and local education partners. |
| Affordability | Generic term for the management of the costs that must be met for delivery of a local BSF programme. The Authority will be required to meet some of those costs from local resources – the difference between total cost and the level of funding provided by central Government is often called ‘the affordability gap’. |
| ADS | Area Data Sheets – Document stating the output requirements of each area within the new school facilities. | Return to Menu |
| BB98 | Building Bulletin 98: Briefing Framework for Secondary School Projects – Publication by DCSF that sets out area guidelines for secondary school buildings. |
| BB102 | Building Bulletin 102: Designing for disabled children and children with SEN – Guidance for mainstream and special schools (DCSF, 2009). |
| Becta | British Educational Communications Technology Agency – UK agency that supports DCSF in its strategic ICT developments. |
| Benchmarking | Process by which the LEP demonstrate New Project value for money against initial sample schemes, anticipated costs of future projects and the costs of equivalent projects. |
| BREEAM | British Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method – BREEAM assesses the performance of buildings in the following areas: management, energy use, health and well-being, pollution, transport, land use, materials, and water. |
| BSF | Building Schools for the Future – the 15 year Government programme to transform education across the secondary sector in England. This is being delivered by Partnerships for Schools (PfS). |
| BSFI | Building Schools for the Future Investment Ltd – the separate company that invests in Local Education Partnerships (LEPs) on behalf of PfS. BFSI have a Director on each LEP Board. Return to Menu |
| CABE | Commission for Architecture & the Built Environment – established by Government to encourage a high quality of architectural design in public buildings. |
| Capital receipt | Also known as a ‘land receipt’ – the income generated through selling off a piece of Council-owned land, which may be used to part fund the Authority’s BSF proposals. Specific rules exist to govern the use of such funds where they arise from the sale of school land. |
| CDA | Client Design Advisor – the Authority’s advisor with responsibility for providing guidance on all elements relating to design for BSF, from drawing up initial options for each school, refining the subsequent brief that is issued to bidders, and in due course helping to assess the quality of the bids submitted. |
| Conventional Capital | Capital grant or borrowing approval for non-PFI projects. See definitions for Supported Capital Expenditure (SCE). | Return to Menu |
| DCLG | Department of Communities & Local Government |
| DCS | Director of Children’s Services |
| DCSF | Department for Children, Schools & Families |
| D&B | Design & Build – The standard delivery route for delivering building works to schools that are being refurbished or remodelled (a combination of some new build work, and refurbishment). |
| Diversity | Descriptive term for the extent to which an Authority’s Education Vision (EV) offers a range of governance arrangements and educational models to give parents and pupils a genuine choice when selecting schools. |
| DQI | Design Quality Indicator – The DQI is a tool to assist with the briefing, development and evaluation stages of a project. | Return to Menu |
| EV | Education Vision – produced by the Local Authority as part of its Strategy for Change Part One (SfC1) to articulate its aims for transforming education through the BSF programme. |
| EWA | Early Works Agreement – a contract to enable construction to start on site in advance of the main contract being signed. These are typically only used where a school must be opened by a certain date which would not be achieved if building works did not commence ahead of the formal signing of the LEP contract. |
| Extended Schools | A key Government policy for increasing the community focus and use of school buildings, either through the dual use of existing facilities (such as sports halls, or providing adult education on school premises), and/or the co-location of other public services (such as libraries, health centres, etc.) on school sites. BSF seeks to encourage and facilitate the provision of extended schools. | Return to Menu |
| FAM | Funding Allocation Model – PfS provides the local authority with a funding “envelope” for a group of schools in a project. The envelope is calculated using the FAM, based on the recommended gross floor areas and the agreed projected number of pupils. |
| FBC | Final Business Case – produced by the Local Authority immediately before Financial Close to confirm that the contracts to be signed will deliver the original visions and offer value for money. |
| FC | Financial Close – the completion and signing of the contracts including financial aspects. |
| FF&E | Furniture, Fixings and Equipment |
| FM | Facilities Management – the provision of services to a school (such as cleaning, pest control and waste management) to allow the facility to function effectively. In BSF this is usually provided by the LEP. | Return to Menu |
| Gateway Review | A process operated by 4ps to assess the ‘health’ of a given project at prescribed stages in its development. Gateway Reviews 1 & 3 are mandatory in the BSF programme. |
| GBA | Governing Body Agreement – the formal record of a School’s Governing Body agreeing to participate in the BSF programme, and (where applicable) contribute some of the Delegated School Budget to meet specific service costs. Usually in the form of a letter. |
| Governance | A number of models exist for the management of schools – Community, Trust, Foundation, Voluntary Aided and Academy being the main options. Schools may choose to adopt these themselves, or in discussion with the Local Authority. See also ‘Diversity’. | Return to Menu |
| HMT | The Treasury |
| ICT | Information & Communication Technology – in the BSF context, the provision of a managed ICT service and Managed Learning Environment (MLE) to schools by the LEP. |
| ISOP | Invitation to Submit Outline Proposal – LA document inviting Private Partner to submit outline proposal for a proposed project. The Private Partner has 20 working days to respond. Return to Menu |
| KLEP1 | Kent Local Education Partnership 1 – The partnership, comprising Kent County Council, Trillium, Northgate Education and PfS Investments, responsible for delivering transformation in Gravesham, Thanet & Swale. For strategic reasons, Kent is one the few authorities to adopt a multiple LEP approach. |
| KPI | Kent Performance Indicator – The KPIs will measure the ongoing performance of a contract. They are used extensively in the Strategic Partnering Agreement. |
| LA | Local Authority |
| LEP | Local Education Partnership – the bespoke delivery vehicle for the BSF programme, whereby a private sector consortium (including all the skills and services required to deliver the Local Authority’s BSF vision) comes together in a formal partnership with the Authority and PfS, after Financial Close. |
| LSC | Learning & Skills Council |
| LST | Land Securities Trillium – The company Kent selected as Preferred Bidder for the Kent Local Education Partnership 1. Following a recent buy-out, the company is now known as Trillium. Return to Menu |
| MLE | Managed Learning Environment – a web-based portal, allowing pupils and staff to manage learning online, communicate between each other and store work on a central server. This is a key component of the provision of ICT services by the LEP. |
| MRA | Main Review Approval – a combined panel of DCSF, PfS, HMT and PUK representatives who consider and ultimately approve Outline Business Case (OBC). |
| NDPB | Non-Departmental Public Body – the governance model for agencies established by Government to deliver specific objectives that are not part of a Government Department. PfS is a NDPB. |
| Northgate Education | The ICT Partner in the Kent Local Education Partnership 1. |
| NPAP | New Project Approval Procedure – The two-stage approval procedure followed by the LEP and KCC to determine how new projects will be taken forward and approved for development by the LEP. Return to Menu |
| OBC | Outline Business Case – produced by the Authority to confirm that its proposals for a given Wave of BSF investment are deliverable, affordable, and offer value for money. The OBC should also include a Communications Plan that sets out how the Authority proposes to manage relationships with its stakeholders throughout the ensuing procurement period. |
| OJEU | Official Journal of the European Union – the journal in which the advert to the market for a scheme is placed, once the Outline Business Case has been approved. |
| OS | Output Specification – A detailed description of the functions that the new accommodation must be capable of performing. Usually split into building functions and service functions. The Output Specification is intended to state only the outputs required of the services, and not the way in which the PSP will achieve these. |
| OSC | Office of the Schools Commissioner – officials of the OSC (part of the DCSF) are closely involved in the analysis of each Authority’s Education Vision (see above) to ensure proposals will be genuinely transformational and offer diversity of choice. | Return to Menu |
| PA | Project Agreement – the standard title for a PFI contract. |
| Pay Mec | Payment Mechanism – The basis of payment to the Contractor which provides for deductions for non-availability of spaces and non-performance by the Contractor. |
| PCP | Primary Capital Programme – the DCSF’s programme for investment in primary schools in England. This can be delivered by LEPs. |
| PD | Project Director – the usual title for the officer responsible for delivering a local BSF programme on a day-to-day basis. Also the job title for the PfS individual who works with a given LA to assist to develop and deliver the latter’s programme. |
| PFI | Private Finance Initiative – A procurement route established in 1995, and more widely adopted since 1997. It is an important route for much Government spending on assets, as it transfers significant risks to the private sector. PFI requires private sector consortia to raise private finance to fund the project, which must involve investment in assets, and the long-term delivery of services to the public sector. In BSF, to ensure value for money, PFI is the funding route favoured for new build projects. |
| PfS | Partnerships for Schools – the NDPB charged with delivering the BSF programme. |
| PPP | Public Private Partnership – the generic term for any, typically large scale, partnership between a private contractor and a public sector body. The LEP (see above) is an example of a PPP. Pupil place planning – the analysis of existing and anticipated pupil numbers to ensure that sufficient, but not surplus, school places are available in the future. This activity is undertaken by the Local Authority, in co-operation with PfS and DCSF. |
| Project Board | The Project Board is established by the Local Authority to provide strategic direction and leadership to its BSF proposals. This will usually be given delegated authority to take certain decisions on behalf of the Council. |
| Project Sponsor | The individual, usually the LA Chief Executive or DCS, ultimately responsible for leading a LA’s BSF project. This person does not lead or manage the project on a day-to-day basis, but represents it corporately and externally as its public ‘voice’ and advocate. |
| PSP | Private Sector Partner – in the BSF context, the generic title given to a consortium of different companies that comes together to bid to deliver a given Authority’s BSF proposals. If that consortium is successful in its bid, it will form the LEP with the Authority and PfS. |
| PUK | Partnerships UK – formally part of HMT, PUK is now an independent body that delivers procurement advice and support to agencies engaged in public private partnerships. PUK is one of the joint founders of PfS, with DCSF, and remains closely involved in the BSF programme via its governance links. | Return to Menu |
| Readiness to Deliver | The process for assessing whether a given Local Authority is sufficiently resourced and prepared formally to enter the BSF programme. The LA prepares a formal submission for PfS and DCSF to allow its readiness to be analysed. |
| Remit Meeting | Once the Authority has submitted an acceptable Readiness to Deliver submission, a Remit meeting will be called, involving the key personnel from the LA (usually including the Chief Executive), PfS and DCSF. This meeting will formally set out a number of objectives that all present have committed to take forward and deliver. |
| SB | Selected Bidder – the title used to describe a chosen private sector partner, selected at the end of the ITCD period, prior to financial or contractual close. |
| SCE(C) | Supported Capital Expenditure (Capital) – This refers to capital grant usually paid by DCSF to local authorities through the standards fund. |
| SCE(R) | Supported Capital Expenditure (Revenue) – This refers to support to local authorities for borrowing for capital purposes, paid through a revenue stream by the Department for Communities and Local Government. The monthly payment made by the local authority to the provider over the lifetime of the project for the services received under the Project Agreement. |
| Section 77 | The process for and limits on the disposal of school playing fields is set out in Section 77 of the School (Standards and Framework) Act 1998. Any formal application to dispose of a playing field is thus called a ‘Section 77 application’. |
| SEN | Special Educational Needs – Secondary age SEN schools, and some ‘all through’ (i.e. taking pupils of all school ages) schools, are included in BSF. |
| SfC1 | Strategy for Change Part 1 – produced by the Local Authority to articulate its Education Vision for the delivery of its local BSF programme. The SfC1 should also include a Communications Plan that sets out how the Authority proposes to manage relationships with its stakeholders throughout the ensuing procurement period. |
| SfC2 | Strategy for Change Part 2 – produced by the Local Authority to develop its Education Vision by applying it to its existing schools estate, and indicating what changes it wishes to make to specific facilities to deliver that vision. The SfC1 should also include a Communications Plan that sets out how the Authority proposes to manage relationships with its stakeholders throughout the ensuing procurement period. |
| SHA | Shareholders’ Agreement – the contract between the partners in the LEP (see above) that governs their formal business relationship as shareholders in that organisation. |
| SPA | Strategic Partnering Agreement – the contract between the Local Authority and the LEP for the provision of services to the former, and how these will be measured. |
| SPV | Special Purpose Vehicle – The company that will be established by the LEP to operate and manage individual tranches of the BSF project. Its sole purpose will be the delivery of the tranche. It will deliver the services using either PFI or traditional funding. |
| SSfC | School Strategy for Change – During a local authority's production of its Strategy for Change (SfC), each school within the local authority's BSF Wave will also be required to start developing its own School SfC, showing how the school will support the delivery of the local authority's objectives and remit, in light of its own needs and circumstances. | Return to Menu |
| Trillium | Formally Land Securities Trillium, the company Kent selected as Preferred Bidder for the Kent Local Education Partnership 1. |
| TUPE | Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) – the official title of the legislation that protects the rights of staff transferring from one employer to another when a service is taken over by another provider. In the BSF context, this will apply, for example, to cleaning staff and ICT technicians employed by the school who transfer to the LEP when the latter takes over providing that service after Financial Close. |
| VfM | Value for Money – the technical term used to describe the analysis of whether investing in a proposal will produce the outcomes sought at an ‘acceptable’ cost. It does not mean choosing the cheapest option. |
| VLE | Virtual Learning Environment – similar to a MLE. |
| Wave | A group of BSF projects in a number of authorities with funding starting in a particular financial year. |