School closures to last for MONTHS as timetable for urgent inspections set out
More than 450 schools are suspected of containing reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC)
PA
Schools will have to wait for months to find out if their building is in danger of collapse from crumbling concrete.
Officials admitted yesterday that 450 schools are suspected of containing the aerated concrete, the dangerous material that could easily collapse.
The assessments over whether the schools are safe or not will not be fully completed until December, as outlined in a newly announced timetable by ministers.
Parents are demanding that the checks be completed much more quickly, as the safety of the children’s classroom hangs in the balance as pupils return to potentially dangerous structures this week.
Caroline Evans, head teacher of Parks Primary School in Leicester stands next to a taped off section inside the school which has been affected with sub standard reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC)
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Alongside this, around 10 per cent of schools and colleges have yet to respond to a Department of Education questionnaire about whether the autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) has been used in their buildings.
The school concrete crisis has affected more than 100 schools so far, who have been told to shut off areas which are reinforced by RAAC.
Areas identified at being at risk of a potential collapse, are currently being supported by temporary makeshift structures.
Ministers are now facing mounting pressure to speed up the process of determining whether a school is safe or not.
This comes after a beam in a school collapsed over the summer holidays, even though it was previously deemed to be safe.
Arabella Skinner, the director of Us For Them, a children’s campaign group, criticised the timetable outlined by ministers.
She said: “It is completely unacceptable that it will take a whole term to learn if the buildings children are sitting in are safe or dangerous.
"This is a car crash and symptomatic of the disdain shown to children by successive governments.
Last week, 156 schools were told to shut or cordon off areas affected by RAAC.
The government said parents at 156 schools in England have been contacted.
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This comes after a beam in a school collapsed over the summer holidays, even though it was previously deemed to be safe.
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However, a further 450 schools have yet to be inspected by qualified surveyors, according to The Telegraph.
The Government have set a deadline of December to complete all the checks on RAAC and set up proper material support to stop the possibility of collapse.
A list of schools affected by RAAC has yet to be published, and it is unlikely this will happen in the next few days, the Telegraph reports.
This has drawn criticism from the Labour Party, who is demanding an audit of all public properties.
Bridget Phillipson MP, Labour’s shadow education secretary, said: “Yet more revelations of chaos in the Department of Education.
“Ministers need to get a grip: these investigations must happen as quickly as possible so that buildings can be made safe, if necessary.
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