Wave of Department for Education awards signals continued momentum across UK school construction pipeline

A significant cluster of new Department for Education framework awards and PCSA agreements has been released across the UK education sector, pointing toward continued procurement and delivery momentum throughout 2026 and beyond.

The latest batch of call-off awards covers a mixture of main works contracts, pre-construction service agreements (PCSAs), refurbishment works and specialist upgrade packages across multiple school projects nationwide.

Major contractors securing recent awards include:

• Kier Construction

• Morgan Sindall Construction

• Tilbury Douglas

• Wates Construction

• Bowmer + Kirkland

• Willmott Dixon

  
  

Notable recent awards include:

Kings College Maths School – Main Works

• Main contractor: Wates Construction

• Contract value: £5.3m

  
  

Monks Walk School – Main Works

• Main contractor: Morgan Sindall Construction

• Contract value: £4.27m

  
  

The Coopers Company & Coborn School – PCSA

• Main contractor: Willmott Dixon Construction

• Contract value: £4.75m

  
  

Sir Frederick Gibberd College – PCSA

• Main contractor: Bowmer + Kirkland

• Contract value: £3.03m

  
  

St Joseph’s Catholic Junior & Infant School – PCSA

• Main contractor: Morgan Sindall Construction

• Contract value: £708k

  
  

Elmgrove Primary School & Nursery

• Kier Construction appointed for evacuation lift installation works

• Contract value: £803k

  
  

Additional Tilbury Douglas awards

• School construction works package (£734k)

• School construction PCSA (£1.32m)

Alongside the DfE awards, Kier Construction has also secured an £8.3m Maintain & Sustain Services contract via the Scape Framework.

ConstructNet Intelligence Overview

The concentration of awards released within a short timeframe suggests continued acceleration across the education construction and refurbishment sector, particularly through framework-driven procurement routes.

The increasing volume of:

• PCSAs

• enabling agreements

• early contractor involvement

• framework call-offs

  
  

may also indicate a broader pipeline of future main works packages progressing toward construction phases. For subcontractors and suppliers, these awards provide early visibility into likely delivery pipelines and contractor activity across the UK education estate.

Potential downstream opportunity areas include:

• enabling and temporary works

• M&E installation

• roofing and envelope systems

• access and lift packages

• fit-out and finishes

• external works and landscaping

• education furniture and specialist systems

• civils and infrastructure support

  
  

The growing number of PCSAs particularly provides useful forward indicators for future procurement activity before projects move fully on site.

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ConstructNet Disclaimer

This ConstructNet intelligence brief is based on publicly available procurement and framework award information and ConstructNet analysis. It is provided for business development and market awareness purposes only and does not constitute professional, financial, procurement or legal advice. Users should independently verify all project and procurement information before taking action.