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Preparing to undertake a capital investment project

As a leader about to undergo a capital investment project, you will be embarking on a rewarding yet challenging experience. Whether remodelling or rebuilding your school, there are several things you and your leadership team will need to consider and action as you progress through the various stages of any capital investment process.

You will need consider the following elements for your project:

  • developing a transformation team with the appropriate skills to manage the process
  • engaging and working with a wide range of stakeholders
  • developing an increased awareness of the impact of space and technology on learning
  • trialling innovative ideas
  • creating your vision for learning
  • developing associated change strategy
  • setting up structures to manage the building processes to ensure that the school is able to maintain and improve outcomes over this period
  • curriculum organisation
  • measuring impact once you have occupied the new build

Strong leadership and supportive project management are paramount to the success of any project. Initially it is important to consider what resources you have in your leadership team and wider workforce to enable you to meet timescales and deadlines in the process while ensuring that standards are maintained and that the day-to-day running of the school is not adversely affected.

Relevant resources

Practical tools

Self-evaluation

Our self-evaluation tool is designed to be used during a capital investment programme. The tool explores a number of key aspects of the capital investment processes that schools need to engage with in order to develop their vision for learning and associated educational brief. The accompanying guidance and tool have been written to help leadership teams to make valid judgements about where they are as they enter and progress through a project, whether remodelling or rebuilding.

Working with stakeholders

Support from those who will be affected by the project is vitial. These resources will help you identify who your stakeholders are, why they are important and how you can work effectively with them.

  • Stakeholder engagement - presentation slides from the Building Schools for the Future Leadership Programme looking at the importance of stakeholders
  • Stakeholder mapping - tool to help you work out who your stakeholders are and how they are disposed towards your project so you can take appropriate action
  • Reaching out to stakeholders on the net - article exploring the role of technology in supporting and managing the engagement process

Scenario activity

Considering what schools will look like and how this impacts on your current and future context is an important element of your preparations. This activity provides you with six scenarios to consider and discuss:

Case studies

Find out how others have gone about rebuilding or remodelling their school. Many of the case studies include a video.