Schools ‘could be shut until 2025’ as government refuses to publish full list

The government is being urged to provide greater clarity over the number of schools impacted by the issue of crumbling concrete.

Ministers have refused to reveal the full list of schools affected, as experts warned the crisis over reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) could extend beyond the education sector – with healthcare settings, courts and offices also potentially at risk.

Chairwoman of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee Dame Meg Hillier warned Raac is just “the tip of the iceberg” of a crumbling school estate, telling The Times the state of some public buildings was “jaw-dropping”.

Opposition parties are demanding information about the scale of Raac across the public sector estate, with Labour calling for an “urgent audit”.

Former home secretary Dame Priti Patel added further pressure, telling the BBC the closures were “deeply concerning” and would make the start of term “quite difficult”

The government has admitted that the number of schools forced to close over dangerous crumbling concrete is likely to rise – as teachers and parents were braced for years of disruption over the issue.

As school leaders prepared for a weekend dash to inspect more buildings and put in temporary measures before next week’s back-to-school rush, Nick Gibb admitted there “may be more” schools, nurseries and colleges affected by the chaos, on top of the 156 already identified.

The schools minister also conceded that some parents are still in the dark about whether their children will return to classrooms after the summer break, with some schools still unaware they will have to close.

Parents of children with special needs were called just days before the start of the new term to be told their school had to shut as it is fitted with a concrete that could suddenly collapse.

Louise Robinson, headteacher of Kingsdown School in Southend, Essex, called parents of students, who are aged between three and 14 and have severe learning difficulties, profound and multiple learning difficulties, physical disabilities and associated learning difficulties, on Thursday to tell them the news that the school will be closed next week due to the aerated concrete.

It comes amid chaos across the country as 104 schools and colleges have been told by the Department for Education (DfE) to partially or fully close buildings just as students prepare to return after the summer holidays.

The government has not identified the schools but the list also includes: Parks Primary, Mayflower Primary School and Willowbrook Mead Primary Academy in Leicester; Cranbourne College in Basingstoke; Crossflatts Primary School and Eldwick Primary School in Bradford; Abbey Lane Primary School in Sheffield.

Ms Robinson said: “Instead of preparing to welcome our students back to class, we’re having to call parents to have very difficult conversations about the fact the school is closed next week.

“We’re hoping that a solution can be found that allows us to open the school, at least partially, but that entirely relies on ensuring the safety of our pupils and staff, and approval by DfE.”

The school’s main building has been ordered to close, which has special equipment inside that the students need and cannot be accessed.

The start of a new school year means new uniforms, books and school shoes all being readied for the return to classrooms next week. Children should be excitedly looking forward to getting back together with friends and learning together after the summer break. Instead, just days before children are due to return, schools have been told to close due to unsafe, crumbly concrete.

Parents will understandably have a sense of deja vu. At the start of the school term in January 2021, primary school children went back to school for just one day before being sent home. Now, at the start of another school term, Conservative incompetence is keeping children at home again.

The rot started with Michael Gove in 2010 when he scrapped Labour’s schools rebuilding programme, writes shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson:

Schools minister Nick Gibb said a number of instances had occurred “over the summer” where a type of concrete used in a number of schools was found to be “unsafe”.

This included a beam collapsing on school premises, despite there being no external signs it was a “critical risk”.

But what is aerated concrete, and why is it such a risk?

Alexander Butler reports:

Last year, construction experts warned RAAC was a “ticking time bomb” and estimated around “half” of the four million non residential buildings in the UK were affected by the material.

So when was the material first used, when was it first flagged as a danger, and what was done about it?

Alexander Butler reports:

Pupils across the country will be forced to resume their studies either online or in temporary facilities after the government ordered more than 100 schools to close immediately following fears over a type of concrete, described as “80 per cent air” and “like an Aero Bar”.

Known as reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), the potentially dangerous material was used to construct schools, colleges, and other buildings between the Fifties and mid-Seventies in the UK, but has since been found to be at risk of collapse.

In total, the government said 156 schools were found to contain RAAC, of which 104 require urgent action while 52 have already received repair works. Some 35 schools have been impacted in Scotland, Sky News reports, though no announcement has been made on closures yet.

The Scottish government has confirmed Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (Raac) has been found in 35 schools across Scotland.

The material is a lightweight concrete used from the 1950s up to the mid-1990s which is being assessed after it was linked to the collapse of the roof at Singlewell Primary School in Kent in 2018.

On Friday evening, the Scottish government said it has “sought to reassure ministers” that mitigation is in place to avoid disruption at the 35 schools.

Pupils at the 104 schools south of the border will be placed in temporary accommodation amid the presence of Raac.

Earlier on Friday, the Scottish government confirmed work was under way to fully understand the presence of Raac across the school estate in Scotland, with local authorities expected to prioritise remedial work.

Figures obtained by the Scottish Liberal Democrats in May claimed the substance was present in at least 37 schools in Scotland.

Ministers have also stressed pupils will not be taught in the parts of buildings where the concrete is considered a risk.

A Scottish government spokesperson said: “This is an issue that all parties are taking seriously and reviews of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (Raac) in property have been conducted by local authorities, NHS Scotland and other public sector organisations for some time so we can all fully understand the scope of Raac, including in the school estate.

“We have now received returns from all local authorities and councils have sought to reassure ministers that in the small number of schools where they have identified Raac, appropriate mitigation plans have already been put in place to ensure the safety of pupils and staff, including ensuring that pupils are not being taught in parts of buildings at risk due to Raac.

“Ministers are clear that they expect local authorities to continue to monitor the situation and we will continue to work closely with them in their response to the challenge.”

The government is being urged to provide clarity on the impact of a lightweight concrete prone to collapse on hospitals and other public buildings after schools were told to shut affected classrooms.

Experts have warned that the crisis over reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) could extend beyond the education sector, with healthcare settings, courts and offices also potentially at risk.

Opposition parties are demanding information about the scale of Raac in other buildings, with Labour calling for an “urgent audit”.

It comes after 104 schools and colleges were told by the Department for Education to partially or fully close buildings just as pupils prepare to return after the summer holidays.

Though not confirmed, it is estimated that around 24 schools in England have been told to close entirely because of the presence of Raac, the PA news agency understands, and schools minister Nick Gibb has admitted more could be asked to shut classrooms.

Mr Gibb said that a collapse of a beam that had been considered safe over the summer sparked an urgent rethink on whether buildings with the aerated concrete could remain open.

But the problem could be far wider, with other buildings at risk of “sudden and catastrophic collapse” if Raac is not removed, specialists said.

Matt Byatt, president of the Institution of Structural Engineers, said that any high-rise buildings with flat roofs constructed between the late 1960s and early 1990s may contain Raac.

He said expert bodies had warned government departments about the dangers of the material in 2018 – adding that “everyone was aware” of the problem.

“Luckily it is being dealt with now. You can’t wait for people to get hurt before making these kinds of decision,” he said.

Professor Chris Goodier, professor of construction engineering and materials at Loughborough University, said: “The scale of problem is much bigger than schools.

“It also covers much of the building stock in the country. This also includes health, defence, justice, local government, national government, and also a lot of the private sector.”

The government is facing questions over why it did not act sooner over schools, and opposition parties are demanding information about the extent to which Raac affects other buildings.