More than half a billion pounds is to be pumped into creating new free schools, including grammars, and refurbishing existing school buildings, the Government has said.

Chancellor Philip Hammond’s Budget will include £320 million to help fund up to 140 new schools, creating more than 70,000 new places.

The investment is intended to build on the Government’s commitment to open 500 new free schools by 2020, he will announce on Wednesday.

The move follows on from Prime Minister Theresa May’s pledge last autumn to create a place at a good school for every child, in part through allowing selective schools to expand and new ones to open.

The controversial announcement attracted widespread criticism, with opponents arguing that expansion will lead to segregation and a two-tier education system.

It is understood that the Government has not set a target on the number of grammar schools it wants to open with this new funding, but is open to these selective institutions submitting proposals.

The money includes funding for more specialist maths colleges, such as the existing Exeter Mathematics School – which selects 16 to 19-year-olds based on their aptitude for the subject.

Free schools open in England.

Of the 140 new free schools, 20 will open by 2020, and the majority of the rest will open over the course of the next parliament.

There are currently 431 open free schools – a key plan of Conservative education reform – and a further 243 in the process of opening.

The Budget will also include a further £216 million to rebuild and refurbish existing schools in England, to ensure that they are fit for purpose.

This money is on top of existing plans to spend more than £10 billion on school buildings over the course of this Parliament.

Philip Hammond will deliver his first Budget on Wednesday (Stefan Rousseau/PA)
Philip Hammond will deliver his first Budget on Wednesday (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

And the current entitlement for children who access free home-to-school travel will be expanded to cover selective schools.

Mr Hammond said: “Investing in education and skills is the single most important thing that we can do to equip our children for the future.

“We are not starting from scratch; we have protected the core schools budget, which stands at over £40 billion this year, and these announcements take the next steps in giving parents greater choice in finding a good school for their child, whatever their background.”