Boris Johnson, the prime minister of the UK has announced funding of £1bn for 50 major school building projects in England. There will also be a further £560m for repairs to crumbling school buildings.
"It's important we lay the foundations for a country where everyone has the opportunity to succeed," said Boris Johnson.
But head teachers said the National Audit Office had identified a backlog of £6.7bn repairs needed across England's 21,000 schools.
The 50 school building projects, which will be identified later in the year, will start from September 2021, in a 10-year programme with £1bn in funding.
There will be an extra £560m for upgrades and repairs to schools for the next academic year - and £200m for improving further education colleges, which was previously announced, will be brought forward.
Geoff Barton, leader of the ASCL head teachers' union, welcomed a "significant step in the right direction" - but said "far too many children are studying in buildings that are not fit for purpose".
In a report from 2017, the National Audit Office warned of deteriorating school buildings - and said it would cost £6.7bn to bring buildings to a "satisfactory" level and a further £7.1bn to bring them up to a "good condition".
It reported that many school buildings were "near the end of their useful lives" - and that major defects were likely to increase.