A secondary school in Newhall could be rebuilt as part of a £150 million repairs backlog programme throughout Derbyshire - but only £9.3 million is being contributed by central Government.
Derbyshire County Council revealed it has held discussions with the Government to secure funding for the rebuilding or redevelopment of William Allitt School, in Sunnyside, Newhall.
But shock figures obtained following a Derbyshire BBC Local Democracy Reporter Freedom of Information request reveal that the current School Condition Allowance allocated by the Government is just £9.3 million.
Derbyshire County Council says that despite the funding black hole, the amount of money being given to the authority annually is falling year on year as more county schools convert to academies.
Academies are run independently of local authorities so councils do not get any money for them from central government.
The authority maintains 326 out of the county’s 416 schools, nurseries and pupil referral units.
There are now 71 academy schools, with a further 19 going through the conversion process.
The county council prioritises specific areas for school maintenance - such as roof replacement, heating system repairs, and window and door renovations - through its County Asset Management Plan (AMP), depending on urgency.
Much of the £150 million backlog follows property surveys of each school, said a county council spokesman.
He said: “In some cases, rebuilding a school entirely can be more cost-effective than continuing to maintain its present site over many years.
“Of the three schools which had the highest estimated repair costs, two are currently being rebuilt.
“The new Glossopdale School in Hadfield has been funded by Derbyshire County Council and is due to open shortly.
“The rebuilding of Wilsthorpe Community School in Long Eaton has been funded by the Department for Education. The new school there is due to open in September.
“The council has also been in discussions with the Government to secure funding for the rebuilding or redevelopment of William Allitt School, in Newhall.”
While the school repairs backlog is currently £150 million, the School Condition Allowance which the council received from the Education & Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) was just £9.3 million this year.
A county council spokesman said: “The health and safety of children and school staff is paramount and we continually carry out detailed assessments of the condition of our school buildings.
“As with all types of building – not just schools – maintenance is an ongoing process and each school’s needs will be different, so the total condition backlog includes works of very different levels of priority and urgency.
"The council receives a School Condition Allocation from the Department for Education, and this is allocated to the highest-priority schemes in the schools for which we are responsible.
"The funding received allows us to deal with the highest priorities to ensure our schools are safe.
“Academies and voluntary-aided church schools access alternative sources of funding for building maintenance.”
The council is gradually working through the highest-priority repairs. A list of those approved and about to be carried out has been released by the authority.
It features 64 schools with small-scale projects totalling around £1.1 million.
These are being joint-funded with the schools themselves, with most receiving half of the required cash for their scheme from the county council.
These include: Bamford Primary, which needs £20,000 for replacement guttering; Coton-in-the-Elms Primary, £13,388 for refurbished toilets; Dronfield Henry Fanshawe, which needs £24,198 for security fencing; and Melbourne Junior which needs £24,252 for classroom, window and door repairs.
William Allitt School has been approached for a comment.
