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MabelPosts (Our Blog)
MabelPosts come in two forms:
A Friday Newsletter:
FE & HE Property and Related News.
Knowledge Sharing Posts:
Practical Property Information.
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Maximising Potential: Floor Space in Further and Higher Education (4)
Part Four: Utilisation Rates In the last MabelPost , we identified that we can use curriculum planning to determine an appropriate number...
Jul 19, 2024
The Longest Note of Caution in History?
MP Gerald Kaufman famously labelled the 1983 Labour General Election Manifesto "The longest suicide note in history." The 39-page booklet...
Jul 5, 2024
Are we there yet? The Status of DfE's 16 FE College Projects
Over three years after the Department for Education (DfE) announced that it would deliver construction projects for 16 Further Education...
May 31, 2024
School Wars 2025 - A New Hope?
Anakin Skywalker, Princess Leia, Education Secretary Gillian Keegan, and Obi-Wan Kenobi are the heroes in this remake of Star Wars:...
Mar 15, 2024
Why UK Governments Don't Invest in Infrastructure and the Built Environment - and How to Fix This
This week, the response from both the education and construction sectors was that the 2024 Budget had done little to help them. Amongst...
Mar 8, 2024
No more going to RAAC and Ruin?
The Department for Education (DfE) announced yesterday (8 February) that it will remove Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC)...
Feb 9, 2024
Transforming Victoria: A Makeover Story at Blackburn College
In April 2021, the Department for Education (DfE) announced it would collaborate with 16 colleges to address their estate issues. These...
Jan 26, 2024
RAAC Schools more than quadruple
The Numbers are 'RAACing' Up... (sorry about that) Predictably, reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) is a little like early...
Dec 15, 2023
The stories behind the prizes at Education Estates
Last month, we saw the Education Estates (EE) annual conference in Manchester. Over the last ten years, 'EE' has become a date in many...
Nov 3, 2023
Yes, it's 2023, and your school gets an upgrade... to a Portakabin (so goodbye tent)!
This week, under the heading “Schools closed by concrete crisis forced to teach pupils in marquees”, The Times reminded us that more than...
Oct 6, 2023
Has Gillian done a f***ing good job?
MabelSpace is back from our Summer Holidays! Welcome to our latest Friday MabePost! We know it's Tuesday, but we just couldn't wait to...
Sep 12, 2023
The Case for a National Social Infrastructure Authority
Last week the National Audit Office published two reports: The Condition of school buildings as well as a Department for Education:...
Jul 7, 2023
Keegan versus Braverman: Round Two (we told you so)
Our 24 February MabelPost included a piece titled: Keegan versus Braverman; Round One! We reported that Home Secretary Suella Braverman...
Jun 9, 2023
Do the Government's Ideas Add Up?
The DfE Loans Scheme is a Short Term Sticking Plaster Last year's ONS reclassification of FE Colleges as 'public sector' will have many...
Apr 28, 2023
AUDE Awards and Government Guidance
Possibly the AUDE awards (but then possibly not). A closer look at the AUDE Awards The Association of Universities Directors of Estates...
Apr 21, 2023
Big Sustainability Contract Announced Plus... Let's Fix Further and Higher Ed!
DfE announces £3.9 million sustainability contract The Department for Education (DfE) is proposing to task a consultant organisation to...
Apr 14, 2023
Floor Plans are Imagined Future Learning Spaces.
Flipping and Blending Teaching. Both financial and environmental sustainability demand that new buildings should last at least 50-60...
Apr 7, 2023
How to innovate (but first, how not to innovate)
Do not log on! A friend of MabelSpace's recounts a story from her early 2000s school days. Her group would wait outside the computer room...
Mar 31, 2023
No budget help, UEA woes, and an award winning place to stay
Hunt no FE Hero Photo Credit: Jeremy Hunt: official House of Commons photo (link to license) The Spring Budget, like the Chancellor's...
Mar 17, 2023
Reclassification and Free Schools Pains plus the NI Horror Show
Horrific Cuts in Northern Ireland The BBC reports that further education colleges and universities could face "horrific" funding cuts of...
Mar 10, 2023
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