Schools concrete crisis: Starmer attacks Sunak’s Tory ‘cowboys’ as full list of closures revealed

A year 10 student told BBC North West he is “absolutely buzzing” that his school is closed due to RAAC concrete worries.

The teenager drew a rather disapproving look from his mother as he shared his thoughts on the situation.

“I was absolutely buzzing because I don’t have to go to school,” Henry told the BBC.

When his mother pointed out he was missing his friends, he responded: “No, I was meeting up anyway, I just don’t really want to go to school”.

Henry went on to clarify that he is looking forward to studying a business course as his shocked mother laughed towards the camera.

The education secretary has ordered headteachers to “get off their backsides” to complete surveys into whether their buildings contain dangerous crumbling concrete.

Gillian Keegan said one in 20 schools is yet to complete a questionnaire sent out in 2018 and called on leaders to respond quickly as the crisis deepens.

The Department for Education (DfE) sent surveys to all schools to discover whether they contained reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), following the collapse of a school ceiling. RAAC is a potentially dangerous material used to construct schools, colleges, and other buildings between the Fifties and mid-Seventies in the UK.

Archie Mitchell has more:

A mother of four has said it has been a “nightmare” as the concrete crisis has disrupted the schools attended by three of her children.

Safety concerns over reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) have caused more than 100 schools to partially or fully shut across the UK.

Sally Walsh, 44, from Buckhurst Hill, Essex, said she is facing a “horrendous situation” as her 12-year-old, attending Roding Valley High School, and two other children, nine and six, attending Buckhurst Hill Primary School, will experience learning disruptions.

Her two-year-old child is also starting preschool this week, adding to the challenges she is facing.

Ms Walsh’s 12-year-old has been instructed not to attend Roding Valley School this week - she said half the school is “unusable” and she “does not know” exactly what is happening.

She said her nine-year-old was “heartbroken” to learn that his class, along with three others, would have to attend a different school, White Bridge Primary School, 0.8 miles away from Buckhurst Hill Primary.

Ms Walsh added that her six-year-old will stay at Buckhurst Hill Primary, but will be taught either in a “staff room, library or school hall”.

“It’s a nightmare, I’m going to have three kids in three different schools plus the little one starting preschool this week”, she said.

“The community are really rallying around, we’re immediately getting offered with help to take my children to school.

“But I’m still finding it upsetting because they’re my kids, I don’t want someone else to take them to school.”

She added: “My son who’s going to a different school was heartbroken when he found out last night.

“You know he doesn’t even know the school, it’s completely alien to him, and it’s hard when we can’t put a time frame on it.

“I can’t say ‘For this many weeks you’ve got to do it and then it’ll be fine’.”

The National Theatre said it has found reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) in a number of its backstage areas.

On Tuesday, a statement from the theatre on London’s South Bank said: “The National Theatre is a grade II listed building made predominantly from traditional reinforced and post tensioned concrete; there are a small number of select backstage areas where Raac is present.

“Our structural engineers are in the process of surveying these areas, initial indications are that they are safe and do not currently require remedial works.

“We have always and will continue to take the safety of our staff and audiences very seriously.”

Hospitals have been told to ensure they have evacuation plans in place to deal with the risk of collapse-prone concrete.

NHS chiefs have been told to have procedures to cope with the failure of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), including for the “decant of patients and services”.

Managers in hospitals where Raac has already been confirmed have been told to ensure that management plans to deal with it are “sufficiently robust and being implemented”.

A letter sent from NHS England to trust chiefs said 27 sites had previously been identified as having Raac, with three of them having already eradicated the concrete.

The letter, from NHS England’s chief commercial officer Jacqui Rock and national director for emergency planning and incident response Dr Mike Prentice, called for trusts to make sure work to identify and manage Raac had been properly carried out.

But it added that plans for Raac collapses also needed to be kept up to date.

“Effective management of Raac significantly reduces associated risks; but does not completely eliminate them,” they said.

“Planning for Raac failure, including the decant of patients and services where Raac panels are present in clinical areas, is, therefore, part of business continuity planning for trusts where Raac is known to be present, or is potentially present.”

A regional evacuation plan was created and tested in the East of England region, with lessons from it shared across the country.

“We would recommend that all boards ensure that they are familiar with the learning from this exercise and that they are being incorporated into standard business continuity planning as a matter of good practice,” the NHS England letter said.

“This exercise is, however, essential for those organisations with known Raac, and should be done as a matter of priority if it has not already been completed.”

The Royal & Derngate Theatre in Northampton has temporarily closed after detecting Raac in its foyers.

Describing the safety of its audiences as “paramount”, the theatre made the decision following a building survey.

Staff will be working from home during the closure, the theatre added.

Chief Executive, Jo Gordon, said: “We are deeply saddened by this discovery and to have to close our doors at this time, particularly as September is usually an incredibly busy and important time for the theatre.

“We are keenly aware of the disappointment that this will cause to audiences, visiting companies and our staff alike, though we know they’ll understand that their safety is always our primary concern.

“We look forward to welcoming everyone back as soon as possible and updating further as soon as we are able.”

Sadiq Khan has urged the government to be “transparent” over the school concrete crisis.

The Mayor of London said the consequences of RAAC are not being shared with him, as he visited Newport Primary School in the capital.

Mr Khan made the trip as free school meals are rolled out across the city to all state primary school children.

“I think the government has to come clean and be transparent,” he said.

“This would be reassuring to staff, to parents, to children and to others.”

Parents across the country are still attempting to piece together all the information after safety fears forced more than 100 schools to close.

Many pupils have been resuming their studies online or in temporary facilities following fears over a type of concrete, described as “80 per cent air” and “like an Aero Bar”.

Schools Week editor John Dickens is on hand to answer your questions as parents grapple to understand how crumbling concrete could disrupt their children’s education. Join from 4pm, and submit questions until 5pm:

The responsibility for the concrete crisis “sits squarely on the government’s shoulders”, the general secretary of a headteachers’ union has said.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “Any attempt to start shifting the blame onto individual schools will be seen by parents and public for what it is: a desperate attempt by government to deflect from its own significant failings.”

He added: “The fact that we now have classroom ceilings held up by metal poles and classrooms put out of use completely is a reflection of the neglect and cuts we have been warning about for years.

“The responsibility for this situation sits squarely on the government’s shoulders and no amount of deflection and distraction will change that.”

Scottish ministers have been aware of the risks of collapse-prone concrete since last summer, Shirley-Anne Somerville said as she pledged to be “open” with the public on concerns.

The Social Justice Secretary confirmed officials from the Scottish government had been communicating with local authorities since “way back in July 2022” to share information on reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac).

It comes as a freedom of information request shows a document prepared by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service warning of potential “structural collapse” of hospitals, the “prevalence of asbestos in buildings of this age” and the “unknown performance” of the material in a fire.

Ms Somerville said the concrete has been detected in 37 schools in Scotland, however the impacted schools are not expected to close while a “desk-based review” is conducted over the coming months.

But 104 schools south of the border have been partially or fully closed following concerns about the material.

Addressing MSPs in Holyrood during topical questions on Tuesday, Ms Somerville said: “This has of course been an issue that the government has been aware of for some time, and that’s why action has been taken, and has been for some time, for example way back in July 2022 Scottish government officials made contact with the Scottish heads of Property Services and directors of education in Scotland to share information on Raac.”

The Social Justice Secretary also moved to reassure pupils, parents and teachers of where the concrete has been discovered, adding: “I can completely appreciate why there is public concern on this, particularly given the way that announcements have been handled down in England.

“But I can reassure the member that we appreciate that public concern means we need to be as open as possible, as we can be, for this because parents and staff are concerned about this issue.”