Building design should be more invigorating, ministers say

The project, to be piloted in 14 areas, follows a competition in which 50 architects took part.

The schools, expected to open from 2006, were designed to fit their settings - urban, rural or suburban.

Education minister David Miliband said it was necessary to "replace Victorian edifices with modern schools".

Flexibility

However, Conservatives said the �2.2bn earmarked for the project was not new money and accused the government of "re-announcing things again and again".

An estimated 180 schools will be constructed as part of the Building Schools for the Future scheme, which will be extended nationwide.

In inner-city areas, some schools will have streets running underneath them, in an effort to save space.

Indoor courtyards will provide open spaces, while, for less built-up areas, architects have designed outdoor classrooms.

These will link with sports areas and allotments.

One design for crowded urban areas - "the honeycomb" - has hexagonal classrooms, which can be "shaped like pieces of honeycomb, so they can interlock, wrap and enclose".

The new schools are expected to have a working life of between 30 and 60 years.

Multi-storey

Mr Miliband said: "A lot of the Victorian schools have stood the test of time. It doesn't mean they are ideal for modern learning. We have to be flexible.

"Many of them were built only to last this sort of time. It is very difficult to predict educational needs in 60 years' time."

Classrooms will be adjusted according to the size of the group being taught.

Architects emphasised internal light

Single-storey schools in countryside areas and multi-storey schools in towns will try to achieve the same light and airy effect, using materials which enhance sunlight.

Mr Miliband said this would improve morale among pupils.

He added: "The plans are going to have a positive impact on educational standards. That's how they were chosen."

The project is being funded by a combination of government money and public-private partnerships.

However, Shadow Education Secretary Tim Yeo said the money was not "new", as it had been announced in the government's 2002 spending review.

He added: "If Tony Blair and Charles Clarke really think that re-announcing things again and again will solve problems in our schools, then they are sorely mistaken.

"The British public have seen first hand during last year's funding crisis that, despite all of the government's 'new' funding, money is still not reaching the frontline."