Gordon Brown, like Tony Blair before him, has spoken of his ‘passion’ for education and his commitment to making schools in the UK world class. He talks of bringing together business, universities, colleges and the voluntary sector to achieve this, and he wants a ‘national campaign for thousands more to stay on after 16, to sign up to an apprenticeship, to study at university and college.’

This commitment is welcome news. But in order to achieve any of these goals our schools must be places where young people want to be and where they can learn to their full potential.

The design and layout of a school can be a key element. A recent survey (launched for National School Environments Week in June) of teachers’ attitudes towards the buildings they teach in found that almost one third say they can’t teach effectively because of the poor design of their schools. The survey, carried out by the British Council for School Environments and the Teacher Support Network, also found that teachers believe good learning environments have a positive impact on behaviour and educational achievement.

There is more money in building new schools now than at any time since the Victorian era. Funding from Building Schools for the Future (BSF) and other capital investment programmes provides a golden opportunity for the creation of innovative, well-designed school environments that are flexible enough to accommodate evolving trends in education and fit for 21st century living. School buildings have been referred to as the ‘third teacher’, after the parents/carers and the actual teacher. Thus, well-designed school environments make excellent ‘third teachers’, badly-designed ones make poor ‘third teachers’.

The design of new schools is moving away from the traditional model. Many schools are being built in the centre of communities and house libraries, sports centres and health services. For the degree of flexibility required here to be met, it is essential that everyone – teachers, students, architects, community representatives, suppliers and local authorities – work together. This process creates an opportunity for all to think about the future direction of the school and how this might translate into a design not just for a building, but for a ‘learning environment’ that supports this.

While many new schools are well-designed and built to high standards, it is up to the government to make sure that all our new education facilities reach those high standards. Fundamental to this is communication. Until everyone involved in school design and build starts talking to each other about what works, and what doesn’t, then mistakes of the past will continue to be made into the future. The government should make access to capital funding programmes conditional on the involvement and participation of those who are going to be the end users of a new or refurbished building.

Sustainability must also be at the forefront of school design, construction and refurbishment. Schools are responsible for 14 per cent of public sector emissions. They provide an opportunity to teach about sustainability and generate an interest in sustainability among communities. Environmental awareness is increasing and children need to be educated from a young age about sustainable living. Sustainable schools can provide a valuable teaching tool for this.

Brown says that education is the ‘great liberating force of our generation’. There is public debate over the relevance of the skills young people have acquired by the time they leave school. According to the Confederation of British Industry, employers are frustrated by insufficiently skilled school leavers and graduates. To meet the needs of employers as we move from a production-based to a knowledge-based economy, and to ensure that education is ‘liberating’, there must be an increased emphasis on encouraging creativity, collaborative working and presentation skills. School buildings need to reflect and accommodate this with flexible spaces, social spaces and a focus on personalised learning.

The importance of design is much more than aesthetic – school buildings provide the opportunity to enhance the teaching and learning experience. But they do more than that – they are a key factor in supporting the UK’s economy for generations to come.