With an eye of finance and cost cutting, keeping energy bills and emissions down to a minimum is now an essential part of school management. One of the first things to examine is the actual bill, writes Alan Aldridge, executive director of the Energy Services and Technology Association (ESTA)

Ian Henning, technical manager at the National Federation of Roofing Contractors, explains why it’s imperative that all roofs on UK educational establishments are well designed and maintained to help reduce the financial burden on local authorities’ stretched budgets.

The one off ‘school trip’ to a theme park or activity centre at the end of the summer term is slowly becoming a thing of the past as more schools embrace an approach that makes the most of Learning Outside the Classroom throughout the year, across every subject and every age group, writes Amy Nathan, project development manager, Council for Learning Outside the Classroom

Ensuring children are safe at school is a top priority for education professionals and parents alike, with many going so far as to argue that first aid should be added to the school curriculum. Acknowledging the importance of health and safety, and in particular first aid, can make a significant difference to the safety of staff, visitors and pupils. Clive James, training and development manager at St John Ambulance, believes it is important to take a sensible and balanced approach, which ensures that the premises provide a safe and healthy place for all who use them.

The autonomous nature of academies brings increased risks to value for money and the proper use of public funds. In the second article for Education Business, Lesley Lodge of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy details where the sector can look for guidance.

Diana Bruce, senior policy liaison officer, Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals, explains what employers need to know about recent changes to payroll processing - Real Time Information and Automatic Enrolment

The DfE’s recent announcement regarding the Priority School Building Programme sets out the Government’s vision of ensuring that England’s school estate remains fit for purpose while offering every student a well equipped and modern learning environment. It also highlights the scale of the challenge. Refurbishing historic school buildings can play an effective part of the strategy to achieve this vision, writes Tim Brennan, senior regeneration adviser at English Heritage

Caroline Wright, newly appointed director at The British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA) provides a summary of the recent changes since the arrival of the coalition government and looks to the future of technology in education.