Created: 30th March, 2026
Robert joined Barker in 2002 and is a Partner based in our Braintree office. A Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, he has over 20 years’ experience of all core building surveying services and provides strategic estates advice to key accounts in the education, commercial, ecclesiastical and public sectors.
An education specialist, he provides the following services: estates and energy strategy, asset management planning, project management and capital funding applications.
Robert works closely with clients to plan and implement energy efficiency and sustainability strategies to save money, reduce carbon emissions and meet ESG objectives.
As a RICS Certified Historic Buildings Professional he provides conservation consultancy for clients with listed and historic buildings.
Robert is an experienced APC Assessor and Chairman and is also an external examiner for Anglia Ruskin University
As a Partner Robert leads the Business Development and Marketing function at Barker, builds relationships with key sector bodies and helps steer the strategic growth of the company.
Email: rgould@barker-associates.co.uk
Tel: 01279 648057
Following our recent webinar, we have summarised some of the most common questions raised by attendees.
This blog focuses on practical implications and what responsible bodies should be doing now.
The strategy represents a shift from guidance to governance, replacing reactive, project-by-project intervention towards a more structured and proactive approach.
Crucially, there are no new statutory reporting duties from the estate’s perspective, but an increased focus on;
Rebuilding remains important, but the majority of the estate will be maintained, adapted and extended rather than replaced.
For most responsible bodies, estate maturity and data quality will become the key factors influencing future funding and investment decisions.
Key dates to be aware of:
This is a phased transition, but preparation should start now.
To operate effectively under the new framework, focus on:
This is as much a cultural shift as a technical one.
The expectations are the same, but implementation may differ.
Key priorities:
Where internal capacity is limited, consider shared services, partnerships or external support.
The long-term direction is to move towards responsible body-led data collection, reducing reliance on central surveys.
CDC provides a high-level national picture, but it is not detailed enough for asset management planning, and it lacks lifecycle and cost data needed for investment decisions
If your CDC results are significantly different (typically by more than two condition grades), you can challenge them with DfE where you have supporting evidence.
Not necessarily. The requirement is for integrated decision-making, not a single document.
The key expectation is that data and planning should consider condition, suitability, and sustainability together. In addition, information should be held in accessible, interoperable formats.
The structure of your documentation is less important than how effectively it supports decision-making.
The Condition Improvement Fund will continue for approximately two more years.
From autumn 2028, it is expected to be replaced by a data-led capital allocation model, removing the need for full competitive bidding.
In the interim, pilot approaches (including regional models and renewal and retrofit programmes) will be tested, and data quality and estate management capability will become increasingly important.
MYEE is the Department for Education’s new digital platform for estate management.
It enables responsible bodies to:
It will also be the platform for future data submissions and annual returns.
The service is still developing. The immediate priority is to:
The autumn 2026 return has been positioned by DfE as a “light touch” questionnaire, not a formal audit. While the final format has yet to be decided, it is likely to focus on:
The purpose is to assess capability and support needs, not to penalise.
DfE has issued updated guidance on condition surveys, but no new technical requirements have been introduced, and expectations align with existing best practice.
Key focus areas:
MYEE is designed to be system-agnostic, with an emphasis on interoperability.
There is often confusion around BIM.
It may include:
The main focus for RBs at this stage should be defining the data set needed for effective estates management and ensuring this data is accurate, up to date, and in a format that lends itself to future integration and interoperability.
For example, accurate, editable drawings, condition schedules in Excel or similar, not in a locked PDF.
This is an area of ongoing concern across the sector. We will be providing further guidance and a dedicated webinar session on this topic.
Initial projects are being selected through pilot programmes, with an early focus on modular buildings.
The long-term approach is not yet defined, but is expected to move towards:
There are several routes available:
Developing capability will be critical to meeting the new expectations.
At present, there is no single mandated template for self-assessment or reporting. However:
There is no mandated system, and the intention is that MYEE will work alongside RB’s existing systems, not replace them. The key requirement is that your data is:
Barker’s EOPortal is one example of a simple system to collate, report and analyse your estate’s data to enable better decisions. For smaller trusts and SATs, Excel and SharePoint (or equivalent) could be sufficient.
The focus should be on data quality and usability, rather than selecting a specific platform.
No, the funding reduction is challenging and makes things tight, but we work hard to make them manageable. We have an active marketing approach to maintain high occupancy of our pre-schools, and offering extended hours has helped keep income stable. We monitor the finances closely to ensure viability.
We have changed our approach so that maintenance is planned along with the cleaning schedule of the school.
We use a variety of approaches depending on the setting, e.g., split cleaning shifts, focused areas of maintenance/cleaning to spread out the demand across the site, and schedule maintenance outside busy hours where we can, so standards don’t drop.
If you’re weighing up what these changes mean for your estate, and want support for what steps you can take to align your estate strategy with the new requirements, speak to one of our education specialists.
