The government has ordered a number of schools to close owing to concerns around unsafe concrete.
Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) is deemed prone to collapse, and there were three cases over the summer.
Gillian Keegan, education secretary, said: “Most parents should not be worried about this at all.
“We’ve been working on this a lot, in great detail. We will identify the schools, we will have the teams of people, we’ll be making sure that we minimise this as much as possible and the school will be in touch.
“It’s 156 out of our 22,000 schools, so for most people, you won’t be affected.”
Tim Seal, Head of Construction at law firm Ridgemont, said: “The impact of RAAC will vary case-by-case. Not all schools with RAAC need to close: the disruption experienced will depend on a case-by-case basis including what mitigations a school can put in place – and how quickly it can do so.
“The government has been managing the risks associated with RAAC since around 2018 by providing guidance (and funding) for owners and managers. However, some recent cases – including sudden roof failures – have caused it to decide that buildings containing RAAC should not stay open without extra safety measures being put in place. This can be considered as part of Government’s policy emphasis over the last few years on the safety of buildings, especially those occupied by more vulnerable parts of society.
“RAAC was used from the 1960s to the 1990s in various types of public buildings – not just in schools, in hospitals for example. Not all remain in the public sector today. It would be sensible for building owners and managers at risk of having RAAC in their buildings to contact a qualified structural engineer or building surveyor for advice.”
While the government hasn’t disclosed which of the 156 schools are affected, the BBC has compiled a list.
Abbey Lane Primary School, Sheffield, South Yorkshire – the roof over the kitchen; The Billericay School, Billericay, Essex – parts of the school are shut and some pupils will learn remotely; Canon Slade School, Bolton, Greater Manchester – some areas are closed for safety reasons; Carmel College and Sixth Form, Darlington, County Durham – kitchen and library are closed but the school will stay open; Clacton County High School, Clacton, Essex – start of term is delayed with some remote learning; Cockermouth School, Cockermouth, Cumbria – because of the concrete in four corridors, the library and the sports hall, school will start a day late; Corpus Christi Catholic Primary School, Brixton, London – juniors are to be relocated to a neighbouring school; Cranbourne College, Basingstoke, Hampshire – one area has been closed since the start of the year but the school remains open; Crossflatts Primary School, Bradford, West Yorkshire – the school is partially closed with pupils moved to different areas of the building, while there are temporary buildings; Donnington Wood Infants School, Donnington, Telford, Shropshire – has had extra temporary ceilings added and will therefore remain open; East Bergholt High School, Colchester, Essex – the school is considering whether to delay reopening or partially close; Eldwick Primary School, Bradford, West Yorkshire – Bradford Council has also confirmed some buildings are closed; Ferryhill School, a secondary in County Durham – the start of term will be delayed, with new starters beginning a week late with and the rest being taught online; The Gilberd School, Colchester, Essex – the school will not reopen until 11 September for students in Year 8-11, with Year 7 pupils returning a day later; Hadleigh High School, Hadleigh, Suffolk – considering a delay of the new term; Hatfield Peverel Junior School, Chelmsford, Essex – the school is closed until at least mid-September due to the need for temporary classrooms; Hockley Primary School, Hockley, Essex – closed since 11 June, some year groups are being sent to other schools; Holy Trinity Catholic Academy, Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire – issues have been identified but the school will open as planned; Honywood School, Colchester, Essex – 22 classrooms have been closed, with some pupils to do online learning and a rota system for year groups in school; Jerounds Primary School in Harlow, Essex – The concrete was detected in the school’s kitchen but is being strengthened by a steel structure and the school will stay open; Katherines Primary Academy, Harlow, Essex – the main building is closed; Kingsdown School, Southend-on-Sea, Essex – the main building has been closed; Mayflower Primary School, Leicester, Leicestershire – the school found out it was affected before the summer holidays; Our Lady’s Catholic High School, Preston, Lancashire – closed on Monday and Tuesday; Outwoods Primary School, Atherstone, North Warwickshire – work began earlier this year to install support as a precaution, but the school will remain open; Parks Primary, Leicester, Leicestershire – back in May, the school had to relocate several classes and borrow rooms from other institutions after the discovery of RAAC; Ramsey Academy, Halstead, Essex – four classrooms have been vacated and are out of use until safety measures are in place; Ravens Academy, Clacton-On-Sea, Essex – the school will be closed for two days next week, on 5 and 6 September; St Clere’s School, Stanford-le-Hope, Essex – parts of the school must close, with some pupils to learn from home; St Gregory’s Catholic Science College, Harrow, London – work is being done to prop up the concrete, but the school should open as planned; St Leonard’s School, Durham, County Durham – the school will not open as planned; St Teresa’s Catholic Primary School, Darlington, County Durham – closed until 11 September; St Thomas More Catholic Comprehensive, Eltham, London – open but parts of the hall, gym, canteen, drama studio, alps and girls’ and boys’ toilets are closed, and the school needs to open mobile toilet blocks; White Hall Academy primary, Clacton, Essex – the school is carrying out surveys and parents were told on Friday there will be three non-teaching days; Willowbrook Mead Primary Academy, Leicester, Leicestershire – parents were told in a letter from the school, about complex arrangements to send children from different year groups to two different schools, and give older children home schooling; Winter Gardens Academy, Canvey Island, Essex – parts of the school are to be vacated with immediate effect; Wood Green Academy, Wednesbury, West Midlands – some classrooms will be closed until October; Wyburns Primary School, Rayleigh, Essex – closed for possibly up to two weeks.
