Student Resource Package – School Infrastructure

Maintenance and Minor Works (Reference 35)

Maintenance and Minor Works (MMW) Student Resource Package (SRP) funding is provided to eligible schools to undertake proactive maintenance of their buildings, using all available information, including the condition assessments from the Rolling Facilities Evaluation (RFE).

It is vital that schools use their MMW allocation for the ongoing maintenance of facilities, to prevent asset degradation and potential health and safety issues.

Once the RFE has been completed, all schools are required to develop and maintain a 5-year School Maintenance Plan (SMP) to help budget, schedule and manage the maintenance and upkeep of their buildings and grounds. The SMP is managed in the Asset Information Management System (AIMS) (staff login required).

For further information, refer to the School Maintenance Plan policy, or contact maintenance.plan@education.vic.gov.au or 03 7022 2212 for support.

Under the department’s Essential Safety Measures Framework, schools are required to ensure Essential Safety Measures (ESM) compliance of rectification works identified as part of any inspection, testing, or annual audit are completed.

For further information, refer to the Essential safety measures guidance or contact essential.safety.measures@education.vic.gov.au

Eligibility

• Eligible schools are those with open or pending campuses.
• Ineligible schools are those due to close, closed, with unstaffed campuses and Public-Private Partnership Schools.
• Eligible assets are defined as permanent or relocatable curriculum buildings, permanent trade training centres and curriculum covered ways.
• Ineligible buildings are non-curriculum buildings, early childhood centre buildings, houses, outbuildings and shade sails.
• Buildings and spaces recorded as ‘no entitlement’ are excluded from this calculation. Spaces are typically recorded as ‘no entitlement’ if they were not originally constructed by the department and are in excess to a school’s allocated facility area. For more detail on area allocation and excess space, refer to Capacity and Area Allocation.

Rates and calculation

In 2023 the Victorian School Building Authority revised the calculation methodology for Maintenance SRP funding to reflect an improved understanding of the asset base and maintenance needs.

MMW funding calculations are now completed in 3 steps:

• Step 1: Maintenance rates are applied to eligible buildings on eligible campuses
• Step 2: Cost modifiers are applied (where applicable)
• Step 3: School allocation is adjusted

Step 1: Maintenance rates applied

Initial campus allocation = Area of eligible assets (m²) × Building rate schedule

The area (m²) of curriculum buildings, trade training centre buildings and curriculum covered ways on a school site are multiplied by the rates of the type of works the specific asset requires. The rates, tailored by building type, are provided below.

Step 2: Modifiers applied

Modified campus allocation = Initial campus allocation + Applicable modifiers (% or $)

Cost modifiers are then applied to the maintenance rates developed in Step 1. These modifiers reflect specific conditions of a building or site which increase the cost of maintenance. Applicable modifiers, with allowances, are provided below.

*As applicable
**This covers the ongoing maintenance of lifts, noting that lift inspections are covered through the Annual Contracts allocation)

Step 3: School allocation adjusted

Final school allocation = All school allocations proportionately adjusted to total available yearly MMW budget (Sum of campus allocations (Modified campus allocation × Excess space weighting %, if applicable + Minimum allocation, if applicable))

To calculate a per school allocation:

• The building-level maintenance allocations from Step 2 are then added to produce an overall maintenance allocation for each campus.
• Campus allocations are then scaled for excess space (space in excess to a school’s allocated facility area) – except for Supported Inclusion Schools and new schools opened within 5 years where this scaling does not apply.
• For more detail on excess space, see Capacity and Area Allocation.
• All campus allocations are then proportionally adjusted to meet the overall maintenance budget available for that year and for all eligible schools to receive a set minimum allocation to cover basic operating costs (2024 minimum allocation = $3,993).
• Where multi-campus, the school’s allocation is the sum of all individual campus allocations.

Payments to schools

The Student Resource Package Maintenance and Minor Works (MMW) allocation is paid on a quarterly basis as part of the SRP budget cash grant.

Changes to a school’s MMW funding allocation between calendar years and/or between Indicative and Confirmed allocations may have occurred due to:

• changes to building data
• changes to enrolment
• changes in relocatable buildings
• changes in the state-wide maintenance budget.

Reporting in CASES21

Maintenance and Minor Works expenditure should be allocated in CASES21 to:

• Sub Program Code: 6201 – Maintenance and Minor Works
  • General Ledger Account Code: 86500 – Security/Safety/Fire Prevention
  • General Ledger Account Code: 86504 – Building Works
  • General Ledger Account Code: 26501 – Building & Land Clearing Account

Refer to the Finance Manual for Schools – Section 13 Asset and Inventory Management on PAL to establish if works should be capitalised.

Maintenance programs

The exception is where Victorian School Building Authority provides additional funding for the maintenance programs listed below which can be one off or ongoing:

• Planned Maintenance Program (PMP) targeted to address Priority One and Two defects identified by the RFE
• Accessible Buildings Program (ABP)
• Safe Trees Program
• Inclusive Schools Fund (ISF)
• Emergency Maintenance Program (EMP)
• Bushfire Preparedness (Vegetation) Program (BPVP).

Reporting in CASES21

Maintenance program expenditure should be allocated in CASES21 to:

• Sub Program Code: 6222 – Maintenance Programs
  • General Ledger Account Code: 86504 – Building Works
  • General Ledger Account Code: 86505 – Ground Works
  • General Ledger Account Code: 26501 – Building and Land Clearing Account

Refer to the Finance Manual for Schools – Section 13 Asset and Inventory Management on PAL to establish if works should be capitalised.