A massive Pounds 109 million will be pumped into building 12 new schools and refurbishing another 10 in Wales, the Assembly government announced this week.

Significant improvements to eight FE colleges will also be undertaken following the cash injection to local authority school and college building projects.

Not all local authorities have won bids. Jane Hutt, the education minister, said only those that “got their act together” over school reorganisation plans to bring school buildings up to scratch would benefit.

Opposition Assembly members criticised the cash award, saying smaller projects would lose out. Jenny Randerson, the Lib Dems’ education spokeswoman, said less than a quarter of the 130 projects would be funded. Conservative shadow education minister Paul Davies accused the government of a “lack of ambition” and said its proposals did not go far enough.