Regenerative Schools Pilot - Innovation Lead

The Department for Education and the Education Estates Strategy

The Department for Education (DfE) is the UK government’s Department responsible for the schools in England. As part of this role, we oversee the safety, condition, and long‑term sustainability of the education estate. This includes ensuring that current and future school buildings are provided with safe, high‑quality environments where children can learn and thrive.

On 11th February 2026 the Department published its 10-year plan for the Education Estate, the Education Estates Strategy, A decade of national renewal. The Regenerative Schools Pilot was outlined within the strategy:

“Testing new solutions, technologies and construction methods – we will continue to look at how we can go further for our future design specifications as part of a research and development programme supported by £33 million to 2029-30. This will prioritise regenerative approaches looking at a wide range of outcomes from energy storage to bio-based construction materials, such as timber and working closely with Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) on the Timber in Construction Road Map.”

This is your opportunity to shape this cutting‑edge project, which will guide the Department’s work over the next ten years and beyond.

Regenerative Schools Pilot, Introduction

The Department for Education intends to research, develop, and deliver a series of single and dual classroom, ultra‑low‑carbon school buildings under the Regenerative Schools Programme. This will be accompanied by a package of landscaping and retrofit interventions which will support biodiversity, passive heat‑reduction (such as tree shading), fabric upgrades to existing buildings (cladding and windows), sustainable drainage systems and the creation of outdoor learning spaces. This programme will also produce case studies, guidance and resources for schools.

As part of the Regenerative Schools Programme, the Department intends to appoint two parties in August 2026: an Innovation Lead and an Academic Adviser. These organisations will produce feasibility studies, research the building materials and techniques required to produce ultra‑low‑carbon school buildings and develop 6 standard designs. Then, in March 2027, the Department plans to appoint a contractor to deliver the works, using the materials and methods specified by the Innovation Lead and Academic Advisers. Separate market engagement and tender events will be held for the construction contractor’s appointment.

The Innovation Lead

The Innovation Lead will serve as the Department’s primary technical partner, guiding the programme from its earliest feasibility work through to the delivery of completed buildings. Your work will include developing an understanding of each school site, identifying opportunities for nature‑led retrofit, and delivering 6 standardised concept designs for new single and dual external classroom pods, ultra‑low‑carbon buildings that meet demanding embodied carbon targets. You will explore and develop a range of regenerative material strategies, produce clear and accessible design material, and provide the technical direction needed to ensure that the Department’s ambitions for low embodied carbon, buildability and replicability are embedded from the outset.

As the programme moves from concept into development, the Innovation Lead will take on a client‑side assurance role, overseeing the Contractor’s design under the Pre‑Contract Services Agreement and ensuring alignment with carbon targets, safety standards, and the Department’s technical requirements. During the delivery phase you will provide project management and technical assurance, monitor the quality of off‑site manufacture and on‑site installation, support statutory compliance, and ensure that handover, commissioning, and early operation run smoothly. You will also be responsible for producing technical guidance, case studies, and updated documentation so that learning from the programme can be scaled across the wider education estate.

Working with the Academic Adviser

The Innovation Lead and Academic Adviser are intended to operate in parallel, each with a distinct focus but with close coordination throughout. The Innovation Lead will ensure technical feasibility, safety, and low‑carbon performance, while the Academic Adviser will ensure that the programme responds to the needs and experiences of the schools and communities involved. Together you will provide the Department with the combined academic, social, and technical expertise required to develop a set of replicable, ultra‑low‑carbon solutions that are grounded in real‑world school environments and capable of informing future national delivery.

Please refer to the engagement section of this notice to register for our market engagement events.