Ministers have launched a £3.9m procurement race for an innovation lead to spearhead the Regenerative Schools Pilot, a flagship initiative that will test new construction methods, bio-based materials and nature-led design solutions for future school buildings.

The successful consultant will become the Department’s principal technical partner, leading feasibility work, researching innovative building materials and developing six standardised designs for single and dual-classroom teaching blocks that can be replicated across the education estate.

The appointment marks the first major step in building the delivery team for the R&D programme supported by £33m to 2029-30. Alongside an academic adviser due to be procured this summer, the innovation lead will shape the designs, technical standards and carbon targets before the Department moves to tender for a contractor in spring 2027.

The Regenerative Schools Pilot sits within the Government’s wider £33m research and development programme for the education estate and will explore how future schools can go beyond net-zero ambitions through the use of timber, bio-based materials, biodiversity measures, sustainable drainage and climate-resilient design.

Once a contractor is appointed, the innovation lead will switch into a client-side assurance role, overseeing design development, monitoring off-site manufacturing and site delivery, and helping ensure lessons learned can be rolled out across future school programmes.