D&A and Fife colleges have building upkeep bills of more than £20m

Country’s further education facilities need work costing £360m, according to Audit Scotland

Colleges in Dundee and Fife have some of the biggest maintenance backlogs in the country, according to an Audit Scotland report.

There are £360 million worth of repairs needed to Scotland’s further education facilities, of which £31m are urgent.

The Auditor General also reported that the attainment gap between rich and poor is worsening and that £50m for pay harmonisation for staff has wiped out efficiency savings from reforms.

Dundee and Angus College and Fife College are among six institutions in the country which have an outstanding bill for the upkeep of buildings estimated at more than £20m, the Audit Scotland report found.

A D&A spokeswoman said some of their buildings “do not lend themselves to modern learning because of outdated configuration and facilities”.

She added: “Our ambition is to deal with both issues, backlog maintenance and providing a modern learning environment, through a major capital development on our Kingsway Campus.”

Scottish Conservative Liz Smith said the national repair bill has been “allowed to spiral out of control by this SNP government”.

“It’s going to be very difficult for colleges to properly teach and educate if their buildings are not in an adequate condition,” the Perthshire MSP said.

Although there is evidence of widening access, the report found the gap in attainment between students from the least and most deprived areas is growing. In Orkney, 78.7% of students passed their course, compared with just 57.4% at Fife College.

Ross Greer, the Green MSP, said reversing a decade of budget cuts to schools and colleges should be the Scottish Government’s “top priority” to stop the gap widening.

Scottish Labour’s Iain Gray said: “This report once again highlights the lack of support Scotland’s colleges have received under the SNP government.”

Shirley-Anne Somerville, minister for further and higher education, said the Scottish Government has invested more than £7 billion in colleges since 2007, including nearly a 10% real-terms increase this financial year.

“More students from deprived backgrounds are completing college courses and this report highlights the importance of colleges ensuring people have ongoing support throughout their studies so they can fulfil their potential,” she added.

Some of our buildings do not lend themselves to modern learning. D&A SPOKESWOMAN