Schools concrete crisis – latest: Keegan defends holidaying in run-up to Raac scandal

Education secretary Gillian Keegan has defended holidaying in Spain in the run-up to the Raac scandal.

Aides said the cabinet minister was “working from home” on the continent between 25 August and Thursday, when the closures at more than 100 schools were ordered.

They argued she continued to chair operational calls every day while in Spain, while taking calls and messages, after heading abroad after GCSE results were announced.

The MP reportedly owns a flat in Madrid and a house in Marbella, but a spokesman declined to say where in Spain she was.

“When I went on holiday, to be honest, for the whole of the summer obviously I had to sort out industrial action, then I had to do the A-levels, then I had to do the GCSEs, so the first time I could go on holiday was…”, Ms Keegan told Sky’s Politics Hub.

“What I arranged was to go on holiday on that day for my dad’s birthday – it was a family occasion and we went.”

Are you a parent whose child has been affected by RAAC closures? E-mail alexander.butler@independent.co.uk

Key Points

• Education sec apologises, blames reporter

• Keegan caught in sweary rant

• Rishi Sunak warned of ‘critical risk to life’ in 2021

• Education secretary vows to publish full list this week

• More than 100 schools shut over dangerous concrete

Gillian Keegan is a ‘technocrat’, Tory MP claims

11:30 , Kate Devlin

Gillian Keegan came under fresh pressure over her future amid growing anger among Tory MPs.

One told The Independent: “Like virtually everyone else in this Government she is a technocrat not a politician. She can probably survive. (There is) no point in replacing her if just the same old”.

Sunak rejected request to fix schools, minister claims

12:30 , Alexander Butler

Rishi Sunak was under fresh pressure over his role in the concrete crisis after a minister said the former chancellor approved funding for the rebuilding of 50 schools yearly, despite a bid for 200.

Schools minister Nick Gibb suggested on Tuesday that the Prime Minister, when chancellor in 2021, had gone with other priorities over a request to increase funding to fix England’s schools.

The Department for Education (DfE) conceded that just four schools have been rebuilt so far under the programme at the centre of that row.

But Mr Gibb insisted the Government’s response to the reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) that is causing more than 100 schools to partially or fully shut is “world-leading”.

Ed Balls accuses schools minister of not knowing how many schools are unsafe

12:15 , Alexander Butler

Ed Balls grilled the schools minister amid the concrete scandal on Tuesday 5 September, accusing Nick Gibb of not knowing how many schools are unsafe.

“You’ve just admitted to us that you still don’t know all of the schools that have got RAAC in,” the Good Morning Britain presenter said.

“The responsible bodies have been advised - very strongly since 2018 - to identify if they have RAAC in their schools,” Mr Gibb responded, addressing the claim.

“You don’t know the answer to my question, do you? There are schools that might be at risk and you don’t know,” Mr Balls then interrupted.

Only four schools refurbished under scheme to cover 50 a year

12:01 , Alexander Butler

Only four schools have been refurbished under Government plans which promised to cover 50 a year, it has emerged.

It comes as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak continues to face questions over funding for crumbling schools across the UK.

Executive of education trust heard about RAAC by “watching TV”

11:15 , Alexander Butler

The chief executive of an education trust said he learned of developments in concrete concerns at schools “by watching TV and listening to radio”, adding that he “wasn’t directly communicated with about the change”.

Oliver Burwood, chief executive officer of the Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust, said it was fortunate he and fellow staff had been engaged with the issue.

“Some of my reflections about how the news was shared - myself and my head of estates and the headteacher involved found this out by watching TV and listening to radio,” he said.

“We weren’t directly communicated with about the change. There was a level of fortune there I’d say that we were on top of this issue because we’re all engaged and interested in it.

“The bigger question I suppose as a leader and as a parent is at what point was there really enough information to understand that Raac was not safe.

“We all follow the guidance that we’re told but could that guidance have been shifted earlier because it sounds like even though we’ve got everything in place now, there has been a period in schools when perhaps this Raac has been present and hasn’t been safe.”

The chief executive of an education trust said he learned of developments in concrete concerns at schools “by watching TV and listening to radio”, adding that he “wasn’t directly communicated with about the change”.

Labour mocks Tory claim ‘most’ schools unaffected by RAAC

10:52 , Alexander Butler

The Labour Party has mocked Education Secretary Gillian Keegan’s claim “most” schools are unaffected by RAAC chaos.

On Twitter, Labour Press posted a graphic reading “Most beachgoers not eaten by big shark” in response to a similar one posted by Ms Keegan, which claimed “Most schools unaffected.”

Ms Keegan said: “The vast majority of schools will be unaffected by RAAC. For those that are affected, we are working non-stop to mitigate any disruption to education, and protect pupils and staff.”

One user replied: “A Tory boast... Most schools aren’t crumbling down! Well, well-done you.”

Children to be taught at a nearby school as building is repaired

10:30 , Alexander Butler

Buckhurst Hill Community Primary School in Essex said it had identified that aerated concrete was present in its central building and that four classes will need to be taught at a nearby school while this is addressed.

It said reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) was in the roof, affecting eight of 14 classrooms, the dining hall, part of the kitchen, some children’s toilets, administrative offices and a staff room.

Of the eight affected classes, alternative space has been found at the school for half, while the remaining four will be taught from a nearby school in the same trust whose buildings are unaffected by Raac.

The school said it would rely on packed lunches to meet the needs of children on free school meals, with arrangements in place from Monday.

“Staff have worked around the clock to get pupils back to school and to these new temporary arrangements as soon as possible,” the school said in a statement.

“We are fortunate to be part of a very positive and collaborative school community - parents, staff and the wider community have been completely supportive, enabling us to focus on the safety and education of our pupils. As you will appreciate, this has been a challenging period.”

Buckhurst Hill Community Primary School in Essex said it had identified that aerated concrete was present in its central building and that four classes will need to be taught at a nearby school while this is addressed.

Parents and grandparents don’t know ‘how long’ RAAC chaos will last

10:02 , Alexander Butler

Parents and grandparents dropping children off for the first day of the new term at Eldwick Primary School, near Bradford, said they had been kept well informed of the Raac issues by the head but were still unsure exactly what will happen in the coming weeks.

One woman said: “My daughter’s really happy to be back and I don’t think there’s much change from her point of view.

“They’ve spent a lot of time rearranging everything inside and I think the school’s done everything it can to make sure it’s as normal as possible for the kids.”

Another woman, who was dropping-off her grandchild, said: “I think parents have been calmed down a lot by the head, who is really good and has kept everyone really well informed over the last few days.

“It’s a bit of a maze in there but things are happening. I don’t think anyone really knows how long this will last, though.”

Eldwick is one of two primary schools identified by Bradford Council as having reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) present - the other being Crossflatts Primary, in nearby Bingley.

Parents and grandparents dropping children off for the first day of the new term at Eldwick Primary School, near Bradford, said they had been kept well informed of the Raac issues by the head but were still unsure exactly what will happen in the coming weeks.

Schools minister admits department asked Sunak for more money

09:15 , Adam Forrest

Schools minister Nick Gibb has admitted that the Department for Education (DfE) had asked for £200m a year for school repairs – only to be given £50m a year by then chancellor Rishi Sunak.But Mr Gibb insisted that it did not amount to a cut, as claimed on Monday by former DfE permanent secretary Jonathan Slater.

Asked if Mr Sunak had cut funding in the face of warnings of a “critical risk to life”, Nick Gibb told Sky News: “It’s simply not true.”

“We put in a bid for £200m. But what Rishi agreed to was to continue the rebuilding programme – 50 a year – consistent with what we had been doing since we came into office in 2010,” said the minister.

Defending the decision, Mr Gibb said: “50 school buildings a year is what the system can cope with. The Treasury has to compare that bid with all the other priorities right across Whitehall.”

Full schools list to be revealed ‘before Friday’, says Tory minister

09:00 , Adam Forrest

Schools minister Nick Gibb said a list of schools affected by crumbling concrete will be published “before Friday” as he put the delay down to the need for it to be “accurate”.

Nick Gibb told the Today programme: “My understanding is that all the schools on the list have communicated with their parents. The issue is getting the information accurate, the mitigations for each school.

“In some schools will just be one room or one cupboard where there’s Raac. In others it will be the sports hall and we will have this list published this week.”

The government has said that 156 schools were built using Raac. Some 104 require urgent action and have had to be closed, while 52 have already received repairs.

Government ‘world leading’ on handling crumbling schools, claims Tory minister

08:36 , Adam Forrest

Education minister Nick Gibb has claimed that the Tory government is “world leading” in its management of the crisis surrounding crumbling schools.

The schools minister said no country had done more to identify the problem with Raac – despite criticism from opposition parties, ex-civil servants and the spending watchdog that the problem is there because of underinvestment in repairs.

Asked about education secretary Gillian Keegan’s sweary outburst – in which she claimed to have done a “good f****** job” – he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “This was an off-the-cuff comment.

“She’s apologised for the language used. What she was trying to get across is the huge amount of work that the DfE has done,” Mr Gibb said.

He added: “We are world leading in terms of identifying where Raac is in our school estate.”

Earlier on Sky News, Mr Gibb said: “We are taking more proactive action on that than any other government in the world.”

Sunak guilty of ‘sticking plaster approach’, says spending watchdog

08:19 , Alexander Butler

The head of the National Audit Office (NAO) has accused Rishi Sunak’s government of a “sticking plaster approach” to buildings repairs in scathing remarks about the crumbling schools crisis.

Gareth Davies, head of the spending watchdog, said the government had neglected the “unflashy” job of maintaining public buildings in usable condition.

Writing in The Times, the NAO chief said families where schools had been forced to close were now paying the price for “underinvestment”.

Davies said the NAO had warned about underinvestment in schools and hospitals, mourning the “lack of a robust long-term programme of building maintenance and replacement”.

“The underlying challenge is that adequately funding responsible capital programmes for our public services leaves less for higher profile projects,” said Davies.

“Failure to bite this bullet leads to poor value, with more money required for emergency measures or a sticking plaster approach.”

Treasury will have to ‘find money’ for schools, says senior Tory

07:59 , Adam Forrest

Former education secretary Baroness Nicky Morgan was “frustrated” at lack of funding for rebuilding ageing schools while education minister.

“Having been a treasury minister myself, of course, I know that all departments put in significantly higher spending bids than they know that they’re going to achieve ... The Treasury never, ever says, yes, you can have everything overall – but they’re going to have to now,” Baroness Morgan told Times Radio.

The senior Tory added: “What we can’t now have is second guessing by the Treasury when the scale and the amount to be spent is fully quantified, the Treasury is going to have to find that money.”

Ask an education expert anything about the school concrete crisis

07:40 , Alexander Butler

How likely is it that your child’s education will be impacted by the RAAC crisis? And what should you do if it is? Schools Week editor John Dickens is ready to answer all your questions on this for The Independent on Tuesday evening (5 September).

Our expert John Dickens will be on hand from 4-5pm BST, on Tuesday 5 September to answer all your questions in an ‘Ask Me Anything’ event. He will be answering live in the comments section below.

Register to submit your question in the comments box under this article. If you’re not already a member, click “sign up” in the comments section to leave your question. For a full guide on how to comment click here.

ICYMI: The RAAC concrete ‘ticking time bomb’ that schools were warned about years ago

Tuesday 5 September 2023 00:01 , Eleanor Noyce

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.

Now, more than 100 schools, nurseries and colleges in England have been told by the government to close classrooms and other buildings that contain aerated concrete that is prone to collapse.

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

The RAAC concrete ‘ticking time bomb’ that schools were warned about years ago

Revealed: Obese patients treated on hospital ground floor because of fears of crumbling concrete collapse

Monday 4 September 2023 23:30 , Eleanor Noyce

Obese patients are being treated on the ground floor of a hospital because of fears that floors above them made of crumbling concrete could collapse.

The shocking disclosure has been made after a group of MPs visited the hospital, built with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

Labour MP Meg Hillier, chair of the Commons Public Accounts Committee, described what the MPs discovered as “jaw-dropping”.

More here:

Obese patients treated on hospital ground floor because of concrete collapse fears

Sunak hit by claim of concrete proof he ignored ‘critical risk’ to schools amid Tory meltdown

Monday 4 September 2023 23:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Rishi Sunak was drawn into the centre of the scandal over collapsing schools on Monday, as he was accused of “huge culpability” for the crisis while the Tories appeared to descend into a “farcical” blame game.

The prime minister was forced to deny claims by a former top civil servant that he had ignored warnings over a “critical risk to life” by cutting school repairs funding when he was still chancellor.

And in an extraordinary outburst which left No 10 reeling, the education secretary Gillian Keegan said others had “sat on their a***” over the crisis and she had done a “f****** good job”.

Read more:

Sunak hit by claim of concrete proof he ignored ‘critical risk’ to schools

Ministers accused of ‘shrugging shoulders’ despite school building warnings

Monday 4 September 2023 22:31 , Eleanor Noyce

Labour has accused ministers of “shrugging their shoulders” despite repeated warnings about the risks posed by crumbling school buildings.

More than 180 warnings about school buildings were made by Labour in Parliament since summer last year, the party has claimed.

It comes as Rishi Sunak acknowledged that hundreds more schools in England could be affected by crumbling concrete.

Last week, more than a hundred schools in England were told they could not fully open just days before the start of the autumn term because of safety fears over the use of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac).

On Monday, the prime minister insisted that 95% of England’s schools were unaffected, leaving open the possibility that more than a thousand could still be impacted by concerns over Raac.

Labour has said it plans to force a vote in the Commons to reveal what ministers knew about the dangers of Raac in school buildings, as well as the names of the schools affected by the concrete crisis.

Bridget Phillipson, Labour’s shadow education secretary, said: “Time and again Labour warned about the risks posed by crumbling school buildings but Tory Ministers just shrugged their shoulders.

“The first act of the Conservative government in 2010 was to axe Labour’s schools rebuilding programme, then Rishi Sunak as Chancellor doubled down, further cutting the budgets by nearly half - and now the chickens have come home to roost.

“Parents deserve to know where these schools are, what ministers knew about this dangerous concrete and what they plan to do to minimise yet more disruption to children’s education.”

On Monday, education secretary Gillian Keegan told MPs that a list of the 156 schools with confirmed Raac will be published “this week”.

Speaking in the House of Commons, Ms Keegan added: “All schools and colleges that have advised us they suspect they might have Raac will be surveyed within a matter of weeks, in many cases in a few days.”

Parents still in dark on concrete crisis as pupils return to school despite ‘thousands more buildings at risk’

Monday 4 September 2023 21:55 , Eleanor Noyce

Parents are still in the dark as millions of pupils return to school this week despite fears that “thousands” more buildings are at risk of collapse from crumbling concrete.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt on Sunday refused to be drawn on how many buildings were affected as he rejected accusations that government cuts were to blame.

He insisted that the government had acted to close more than 100 schools known to have the potentially dangerous reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) as soon as they were alerted – but ministers are no closer to revealing the full list, despite repeated calls to do so.

More here:

Parents still in dark on concrete crisis as millions of pupils return to school

Gillian Keegan reacts to viral clip of her swear she is 'doing a good job'

Monday 4 September 2023 21:44 , Eleanor Noyce

In criticism caught on camera after an interview on Monday, a frustrated education secretary Gillian Keegan hit out at those who she argued had “sat on their arse and done nothing” following the Raac scandal.

She also questioned why no one was saying “you’ve done a f****** good job”, before being forced to go before broadcasters to apologise.

“I wasn’t talking about me, actually, I was talking about the department”, Ms Keegan said as she reacted to the viral clip.

Sunak and Keegan under growing pressure over crumbling concrete in schools

Monday 4 September 2023 21:24 , Eleanor Noyce

Rishi Sunak and Gillian Keegan are under growing pressure over the crumbling concrete closing schools, as the education secretary claimed others had failed to tackle the crisis in a sweary outburst.

In criticism caught on camera after an interview on Monday, a frustrated Ms Keegan hit out at those who she argued had “sat on their arse and done nothing”.

She also questioned why no one was saying “you’ve done a f****** good job”, before being forced to go before broadcasters to apologise.

Ms Keegan went on to admit to being on holiday in Spain in the run up to ordering more than 100 schools and colleges in England to make complete or partial closures.

Earlier in the day, the prime minister admitted hundreds more schools could be affected by the reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) issue.

He insisted that 95% of England’s schools were unaffected, leaving open the possibility that more than a thousand could still be impacted by the collapse-risk material.

Mr Sunak was also accused by a former top official at the Department for Education (DfE) of having declined a request for funding to rebuild more schools while he was chancellor.

Meanwhile, Ms Keegan promised MPs that a list of schools with confirmed Raac will be published “this week”.

The prime minister’s official spokesman rebuked the education secretary, saying the language she was caught on camera using “obviously is not acceptable”.

While still on camera in the seconds after an interview with ITV News, Ms Keegan had said: “Does anyone ever say, you know what, you’ve done a f****** good job because everyone else has sat on their arse and done nothing?

“No signs of that, no?”

In a follow-up interview, Ms Keegan apologised for her “choice language” and said it was an “off-the-cuff remark”.

Memorable world leader hot-mic gaffes from ‘bigoted woman’ to ‘purring Queen’

Monday 4 September 2023 20:55 , Eleanor Noyce

If there’s one thing you would think politicians would have learned to be careful around by now, it’s a microphone.

Yet, time after time, MPs and even world leaders get caught out when they think no one can hear them.

From former US president Ronald Reagan’s bizarre joke to bomb Russia and Gordon Brown’s throwaway insult that helped him lose a general election, there are plenty of cautionary tales recorded for posterity.

Holly Evans reports:

Memorable world leader hot-mic gaffes from ‘bigoted woman’ to ‘purring Queen’

Concrete closure list: What schools will have to close because of crumbling RAAC?

Monday 4 September 2023 20:40 , Eleanor Noyce

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.

Read more:

Concrete closure list: The schools affected by crumbling RAAC so far

Government has ‘dropped the ball’, says Starmer as Mayor of London says Sunak should’ve ‘sacked’ Keegan

Monday 4 September 2023 20:27 , Eleanor Noyce

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer said ministers appeared to be attempting to “pass the buck” for school building closures caused by the concrete issue.

He said: “I think this whole situation is descending into farce.

“The government has dropped the ball here, failed to prepare.

“The prime minister bears responsibility for some of the key decisions along the way.

“And instead of coming out today and saying, ‘This is what we’re going to do to fix the problem, which we have made a lot worse’, you’ve got members of the cabinet coming out trying to blame other people, trying to blame people within their own teams and to say, essentially, ‘Put responsibility anywhere but on the government’.

“That is not what Britain deserves.”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan went further, saying that Mr Sunak “should’ve sacked Gillian Keegan”.

“He should’ve sacked Gillian Keegan - if I was Sunak now and you showed me that video of Gillian Keegan I’d be demanding she be kicked out,” the Labour politician told TalkTV.

Former Tory minister suggests government gave inaccurate information on crumbling schools

Monday 4 September 2023 20:20 , Sam Rkaina

A Tory former minister has suggested the Government provided him with inaccurate information over schools affected by crumbling concrete.

Mark Francois said headteachers in his Essex constituency had given him the “ground truth” with “a number of differences” compared to the information provided by the Department for Education.

He urged Education Secretary Gillian Keegan to ensure her department provides “absolutely accurate” and up-to-date information when it releases the list of schools with confirmed reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), expected later this week.

Mr Francois highlighted the case of a primary school that was promised eight relocatable classrooms “ready to go” by September 4, noting they will now not be available until mid-November.

Mr Francois said Essex County Council officials have “worked their socks off ultimately to keep children safe”.

He told the Commons: “But I regret to tell the Secretary of State that having now managed to speak to all of the heads of affected schools in my constituency, there are a number of differences between what I’ve been told by her department and, if you like, the ground truth that I’ve been told by the headteachers themselves.”

He added: “When this list is published later this week, can the Secretary of State please ensure that the information in it is absolutely accurate, absolutely up-to-date, because that is the best way to reassure parents, staff and pupils – not least those parents who will be very upset if they hear with virtually no notice they have to take weeks off work because their children cannot go to school.”

Hundreds more schools could be hit by crumbling concrete row, Sunak acknowledges

Monday 4 September 2023 20:10 , Eleanor Noyce

Hundreds more schools in England could be affected by crumbling concrete, Rishi Sunak acknowledged as he faced accusations he failed to fund a programme to replace ageing classrooms.

The prime minister insisted that 95% of England’s schools were unaffected, leaving open the possibility that more than a thousand could still be impacted by concerns over reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac).

Downing Street said the total number was expected to be in the hundreds rather than the thousands and the vast majority of schools would not be affected.

More than a hundred schools in England were told they could not fully open just days before the start of the autumn term because of safety fears over the use of Raac.

Pupils face being taught in temporary classrooms, on different sites or even forced into pandemic-style remote lessons.

Mr Sunak said: “New information came to light relatively recently and it’s important that once it had, that the Government acted on it as swiftly as possible.

“Of course I know the timing is frustrating, but I want to give people a sense of the scale of what we are grappling with here: there are around 22,000 schools in England and the important thing to know is that we expect that 95% of those schools won’t be impacted by this.”

If, as Mr Sunak said, 5% of schools are impacted, that would mean 1,100 are affected.

The prime minister’s official spokesman said : “I think the prime minister was providing reassurance to parents, pupils and schools that the vast majority - we believe more than 95% won’t be affected.”

He said education secretary Gillian Keegan had set out that “we expect the numbers to be in the hundreds, not thousands” but “while we are still waiting on schools to return their surveys and confirm their specific situations we can’t be more definitive”.

Ms Keegan told MPs later on Monday that a list of schools with confirmed reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) will be published “this week”.

Schools not government provided ‘ground truth’ over crumbling concrete - Tory MP

Monday 4 September 2023 20:06 , Eleanor Noyce

A Tory former minister has suggested the government provided him with inaccurate information over schools affected by crumbling concrete.

Mark Francois said headteachers in his Essex constituency had given him the “ground truth” with “a number of differences” compared to the information provided by the Department for Education.

He urged education secretary Gillian Keegan to ensure her department provides “absolutely accurate” and up-to-date information when it releases the list of schools with confirmed reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), expected later this week.

Mr Francois highlighted the case of a primary school that was promised eight relocatable classrooms “ready to go” by 4 September, noting they will now not be available until mid-November.

Ms Keegan said the list to be released will “evolve over time” as the government receives more information about the affected sites.

The minister also said it is hoped the surveying work will be completed in the “next couple of weeks”.

For Labour, shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson described the situation as an “utter shambles”, before adding: “The defining image of 13 years of Conservative government: children cowering under steel props to stop the ceiling falling in on their heads.”

Keegan defends going on holiday in run up to crisis

Monday 4 September 2023 20:03 , Sam Rkaina

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has defended holidaying in the run-up to the schools concrete crisis unfolding.

She told Sky’s Politics Hub: “When I went on holiday, to be honest, for the whole of the summer obviously I had to sort out industrial action, then I had to do the A-levels, then I had to do the GCSEs, so the first time I could go on holiday was…

“I don’t expect anyone to feel sorry for me, I’m certainly not getting that vibe from you.

“But what I arranged was to go on holiday on that day for my dad’s birthday – it was a family occasion and we went.”

She said she has “always worked remotely” throughout her career and that she planned to come back if investigations raised concerns.

“I came back straight away – well, actually, I had to wait a day because of the air traffic control issue,” she added.

Durham school to use Radisson hotel to teach pupils

Monday 4 September 2023 19:58 , Sam Rkaina

St Leonard’s Catholic School in Durham, which is currently closed due to Raac in the building, said it is planning to use the Radisson hotel for two days this week for sessions for sixth formers.

In an email sent to parents on Monday, which has been seen by the PA news agency, the school said staff had now also toured potential teaching space at the University of Durham.

Gillian Keegan was in Spain ahead of concrete crisis unfolding, say aides

Monday 4 September 2023 19:40 , Eleanor Noyce

Education secretary Gillian Keegan was in Spain with family in the lead-up to the eruption of the crisis in schools centring on crumbling concrete, it has emerged.

Aides said the cabinet minister was “working from home” on the continent between 25 August and Thursday, when the closures at more than 100 schools were ordered.

They argued she continued to chair operational calls every day while in Spain, while taking calls and messages, after heading abroad after GCSE results were announced.

The MP reportedly owns a flat in Madrid and a house in Marbella, but a spokesman declined to say where in Spain she was.

The complete or partial closures at 104 schools and colleges in England over reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) was announced with a press release on Thursday afternoon.

Ms Keegan, according to aides, was in her department overseeing the publication of the guidance that day before speaking to broadcasters in the evening.

A Department for Education spokesman said: “Throughout this summer the education secretary has been driving forward this government’s priorities, bringing an end to strike action in schools, announcing 15 new free schools and seven new Send (special educational needs and disabilities) schools, as well as overseeing the return to pre-pandemic grading for GCSE, A-level and VTQ results.

“The education secretary took the cautious and proactive decision to change guidance on Raac and this week has chaired daily operational calls with ministers and senior officials in the department and virtually.”

UK has ‘better understanding’ of where Raac is than ‘most other countries’

Monday 4 September 2023 19:20 , Eleanor Noyce

Education secretary Gillian Keegan said in her statement to MPs: “Because of our proactive questionnaire and surveying programme, we have a better understanding of where Raac (reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete) is on the schools estate than in most other countries.

“All schools and colleges that have advised us they suspect they might have Raac will be surveyed within a matter of weeks, in many cases in a few days.

“Most ... suspected cases will not have Raac.”

She said the government is taking a “deliberately cautious approach to prioritising children’s safety”.

She also said the government’s “proactive approach” to assessing Raac in schools, which included a programme of professional surveys begun in September 2022, revealed three cases over the summer “where Raac that would have been graded as non-critical had failed without warning”.

Sunak hit by claim of concrete proof he ignored ‘critical risk’ to schools amid Tory meltdown

Monday 4 September 2023 19:02 , Eleanor Noyce

Rishi Sunak was drawn into the centre of the scandal over collapsing schools on Monday, as he was accused of “huge culpability” for the crisis while the Tories appeared to descend into a “farcical” blame game.

The prime minister was forced to deny claims by a former top civil servant that he had ignored warnings over a “critical risk to life” by cutting school repairs funding when he was still chancellor.

And in an extraordinary outburst which left No 10 reeling, the education secretary Gillian Keegan said others had “sat on their a***” over the crisis and she had done a “f****** good job”.

Read more:

Sunak hit by claim of concrete proof he ignored ‘critical risk’ to schools

Parent says she is ‘furious’ that concrete problem was not solved during the summer

Monday 4 September 2023 18:40 , Eleanor Noyce

A parent of an 11-year-old student at The Gilberd School in Colchester said she is “furious” that the concrete problem was not solved before or during the summer.

Ayse Guveli, a 31-year-old professor at the University of Essex, told PA: “I am seriously worried about my daughter’s education, especially after the Covid disruption and at this point of her life when she is just starting secondary school. She is anxious and cannot sleep well.

“There is no clarity on how the school will manage this problem and ensure good quality education, without delays and loss of learning for my daughter and many other children.

“I have also just started a new job. We were emailed last Friday that her school will not open.

“I had no time to arrange something or someone to keep my daughter busy during this period so that I could work.

“I am furious why this problem was not solved before or during the summer.”

Gillian Keegan: The education secretary in hot water over a hot mic incident

Monday 4 September 2023 18:20 , Eleanor Noyce

When Gillian Keegan was appointed education secretary by Rishi Sunak, she was the fifth person to hold the role in under four months and the sixth since the 2019 general election.

Less than a year later, she is fighting a major crisis after ordering more than 100 schools to make closures because of concerns that a crumbling aerated concrete could collapse.

The strain of that erupted in public on Monday when she unwittingly vented her frustrations, swearing about a lack of gratitude towards her while others have “sat on their arse and done nothing” while the cameras were still rolling after a broadcast interview.

Born in Leigh, Greater Manchester, the Conservative MP’s rise to the Cabinet was very different from many of her colleagues.

She completed her secondary education at a comprehensive in Knowsley, Merseyside - a far cry from the Prime Minister’s education at the elite Winchester College.

And unlike Mr Sunak and many other senior ministers, she did not study at Oxford University, instead taking on an apprenticeship at a subsidiary of General Motors aged 16.

While working, she obtained a degree in business studies from Liverpool John Moores University before a three-decade career in the manufacturing, banking and IT industries.

Ms Keegan‘s work took her to Tokyo and Madrid before she entered the Commons in the safe seat of Chichester, West Sussex, in 2017.

She once hit out at “inverted snobbery” after critics pointed out she appeared to be wearing a £10,000 Rolex watch while discussing striking teachers’ pay demands in an interview.

Her first stint in government was a junior role in the education department to which she was appointed by Boris Johnson in February 2020.

After a year in health, Liz Truss appointed Ms Keegan to the foreign office when she briefly took Downing Street in September last year.

It was Mr Sunak who brought her into the Cabinet as education secretary when he took over at No 10 in October.

Gillian Keegan took action on Raac in schools even though it was ‘politically difficult'

Monday 4 September 2023 18:10 , Eleanor Noyce

Education secretary Gillian Keegan said she took action on the issue of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) in schools even though it was “politically difficult”.

Labour’s shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson had asked who in the government in the months ahead would take “some responsibility for sorting out the chaos our children face”.

Ms Keegan said in response: “Of course, that is me. What matters is what you do. When I was given new information and had to consider the impacts that this would have on our schools and children, I took action, even though it was politically difficult.”

She attempted to draw a contrast with Ms Phillipson, with the education secretary taking aim at Labour’s record in Wales, telling the Commons: “Today, two schools closed in Wales just as they start their surveying programme.”

Ms Keegan said mitigation for schools and rebuilding would be fully funded and added: “In terms of doing a good job, I make no apologies for praising the work of the Department (for) Education.

“Not my work, no, but the work of colleagues, of schools, of professionals, who have helped to ensure that we are not sending children back to schools without the guarantee that they will be safe.”

It is ‘right’ that Gillian Keegan has apologised after being caught swearing on camera - Downing Street

Monday 4 September 2023 17:55 , Eleanor Noyce

Downing Street said it was right that Gillian Keegan had apologised after being caught swearing on camera.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “I think that the language used obviously is not acceptable. It is right that the education secretary has apologised for that.

“But at the front of parents’ minds will be the situation in their schools and I think that is what they will want to hear more about.”

Downing Street added that Rishi Sunak was satisfied with Gillian Keegan‘s apology.

The prime minister’s official spokesman said: “Yes, and as I say I think what will be at the forefront of parents’ minds is the situation of their school and the Government’s focus today has been on providing further transparency.

“What the public will continue to find is that in the vast majority of cases, their child’s school is not affected.”

'Vast majority of schools unaffected' by Raac concrete, education secretary says

Monday 4 September 2023 17:48 , Eleanor Noyce

Education secretary Gillian Keegan has said that the “vast majority” of schools are “unaffected” by Raac concrete.

“There are over 22,000 schools and colleges in England and the vast majority of them are unaffected by Raac”, Ms Keegan told the House of Commons.

“We have been supporting schools and colleges to ensure that risks resulting from Raac are being mitigated.”

Ask an education expert anything about the school concrete crisis - from homeschooling to closure details

Monday 4 September 2023 17:45 , Eleanor Noyce

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”.

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.

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:

Ask an education expert anything about the school concrete closure crisis

Issues in schools ‘deeper and wider’ than just Raac - Bridget Phillipson

Monday 4 September 2023 17:35 , Eleanor Noyce

As education secretary Gillian Keegan delivered a statement to the House of Commons on the crumbling concrete crisis, shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson has labelled the issues in schools “deeper and wider” than just Raac.

“This is the tragic end game of the sticking plaster politics of the last 13 years and children have been failed by this Conservative government”, Ms Phillipson told the Commons.

“It is Raac which is our focus today, but the issue is wider and deeper across our schools and across our country.

“Deeper because school buildings are only part of the wider failure in our education system, over which ministers have been presiding for 13 long years.

“Wider because thousands upon thousands of schools and other public buildings were built in the last century, not intended to last for more than a couple of decades.

“That is why the last Labour government took responsibility and began rebuilding them.”

What happened to school funding whilst Rishi Sunak was chancellor?

Monday 4 September 2023 17:30 , Eleanor Noyce

According to the widely respected Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), funding for school maintenance remains at historically low levels.

In the three years up to 2010, when the last Labour government’s school building programme reached its peak, the DfE’s average capital budget was around £10 billion a year (in current prices). In the three years up to 2024, the department is expected to spend an average of £5.2 billion a year.

Focusing on maintenance, the IFS said spending was forecast to be only 3% higher in real terms than it was in 2016/17.

Rishi Sunak’s time as chancellor did coincide with a fall in spending on school rebuilding programmes, falling from £765 million in 2019/20 to £416 million two years later, according to the National Audit Office (NAO).

But these figures reflect the conclusion of the PSBP2 scheme, while the School Rebuilding Programme Mr Sunak supported as chancellor was yet to get going. When it does, spending is forecast to rise to £1.1 billion in 2024/25.

While Mr Sunak may have initiated a programme that will boost funding for school rebuilding and maintenance, the money provided still falls well short of the government’s own estimates of what is needed.

In June this year, the NAO published a report outlining the shortfall between what was required and what was being provided.

In its report, the NAO said the DfE had estimated its “best practice” level of capital funding would be £7 billion a year and that it would need £5.3 billion “to maintain schools and mitigate the most serious risks of building failure once it had expanded its School Rebuilding Programme”.

Owing to the fact it would take time to increase spending, the department asked for £4 billion a year at the 2020 spending review, when Mr Sunak was chancellor, but got only £3.1 billion.

This was only three-quarters of what it asked for and less than half the “best practice” figure the department had estimated.

The NAO said: “In recent years, funding for school buildings has not matched the amount DfE estimates it needs, contributing to the estate’s deterioration.”

Government to publish full list of Raac impacted schools this week

Monday 4 September 2023 17:22 , Eleanor Noyce

The government will publish the full list of schools and colleges impacted by Raac this week, education secretary Gillian Keegan has told the House of Commons.

“We will publish the list of the 156 schools with confirmed cases of Raac this week, with details of initial mitigations in place”, Ms Keegan said.

“After this, we will provide updated information as new cases of Raac are confirmed and existing cases resolved.”

Government has ‘always taken immediate action’ on buildings that pose risk - Keegan

Monday 4 September 2023 17:19 , Eleanor Noyce

Delivering a statement to the House of Commons over the Raac concrete crisis impacting schools, education secretary Gillian Keegan has claimed that the government has “always taken immediate action” on buildings that pose a risk.

“Absolutely nothing is more important than the safety of children and staff”, Ms Keegan told the Commons.

“It has always been the case that where we are made aware of a building that poses an immediate risk, we’ve taken immediate action.

“Parents and children have been looking forward to starting the new term and I understand the timing of this change in guidance to schools and colleges will have caused concern and disruption.

“However, faced with recent cases, including one that emerged right at the end of the school holidays, I believe 100 per cent that this is the right thing to do and that is why we have taken such rapid steps to support our schools and colleges.”

Schools ‘managing the anxiety’ of parents on behalf of government, unions say

Monday 4 September 2023 17:12 , Eleanor Noyce

Schools are “managing the anxiety” of parents on behalf of the government and they have a right to know how the concrete crisis emerged, unions have said.

Leaders of a coalition of education and public sector unions have written to Gillian Keegan demanding urgent answers on the Raac “emergency” - including clarity over funding and support for schools.

The letter says: “It cannot be right that school leaders and their teams are charged with making decisions about the immediate risk of harm if they discover or are concerned that Raac is present on their site. They do not have the relevant expertise to make such assessments.”

The letter has been sent to the Education Secretary from the general secretaries of school leaders’ union NAHT, the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), the National Education Union (NEU), the NASUWT teaching union, GMB and Unison.

It adds: “Our members are managing the anxiety of parents and carers on behalf of government. The least they are entitled to know, with confidence, is how they ended up in this situation when the government knew of the risks long ago.”

Live: Education secretary Gillian Keegan delivers statement on crumbling school crisis

Monday 4 September 2023 16:53 , Eleanor Noyce

Watch live as secretary of state for education Gillian Keegan delivers a statement to the House of Commons over the Raac concrete crisis affecting schools and buildings.

The statement comes as Ms Keegan apologised for a sweary rant in which she criticised her colleagues over the crumbling schools scandal.

The education secretary said it was an “off-the-cuff remark” after she was caught on hot mich saying: “Does anyone ever say ‘you know what, you’ve done a f****** good job because everyone else has sat on their arse and done nothing?”

Explaining the outburst, she appeared to blame the reporter who had been interviewing her.

Watch:

Live: Education secretary Gillian Keegan delivers statement on crumbling school crisis

Rishi Sunak ‘cut funding’ for new schools whilst chancellor, former top civil servant claims

Monday 4 September 2023 16:37 , Eleanor Noyce

The ‘crumbly concrete crisis’ has put spending on school maintenance in the spotlight, with claims that the government has not spent enough on new school buildings.

Capital spending has fallen and remains below the Department for Education (DfE)’s own estimates of what it needs, with many school buildings containing reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) still to be replaced.

Jonathan Slater, the former top civil servant at the DfE, told the Today programme Rishi Sunak cut funding for new schools while chancellor, reducing the number being built annually from 100 to 50.

The Prime Minister has denied these claims, saying he introduced a programme to build 50 new schools per year, roughly in line with previous levels of school rebuilding and refurbishment programmes since 2010.

In June 2020, the Government announced its School Rebuilding Programme, set to last a decade and build or rebuild 500 schools - a rate of 50 per year.

That programme was reaffirmed in the 2021 spending review overseen by Mr Sunak.

It replaced the second phase of the Priority Schools Building Programme (PSBP2) which was introduced in 2016 to tackle those school buildings in the worst condition.

PSBP2 was supposed to run for five years and rebuild or substantially refurbish buildings at 272 schools - a rate of 54 per year. Delays caused by Covid and increasing costs meant only 256 of those schools had been delivered by March 2023, which amounts to around 37 schools per year.

Watch: Smiling education secretary Gillian Keegan apologises for ‘off the cuff’ comment on school concrete outburst

Monday 4 September 2023 16:22 , Eleanor Noyce

Education secretary Gillian Keegan has apologised for her “off the cuff” comment after she said some have been “sat on their a***s” during the school Raac crisis.

Ms Keegan had been speaking to ITV News as it was confirmed there could potentially be hundreds more schools affected by the concrete scandal.

However, in the moments after her interview had finished, Ms Keegan was recorded criticising others.

“Does anyone ever say, you know what, you’ve done a f***ing good job because everyone else has sat on their a**** and done nothing,” she said.

She has now issued an apology for her “choice of language”.

Gillian Keegan apologises for ‘off the cuff’ comment on school concrete outburst

Keegan appears to blame reporter for sweary rant

Monday 4 September 2023 15:54 , Matt Mathers

Gillian Keegan appeared to blame the reporter who interviewed her for a sweary rant in which she criticised her colleagues over the crumbling schools scandal.

Explaining the outburst, she told ITV: “It was an off-the-cuff remark. The interviewer had been pressing me quite hard - you know, why I hadn’t solved this issue which had been going on since 1994.

“It is frustrating because we’re doing everything now to take a leading position, to be on the front foot , to put all of the support in place.”

Education secretary apologises

Monday 4 September 2023 15:47 , Katy Clifton

Gillian Keegan has apologised after her rant over the concrete crisis was caught on mic.

In a follow-up interview, Ms Keegan told broadcasters it was an “off-the-cuff remark after the news interview had finished, or apparently after it finished”.

“I would like to apologise for my choice language, that was unnecessary,” she said.

Labour MPs poke fun at Keegan after sweary rant

Monday 4 September 2023 15:26 , Matt Mathers

Labour MPs are poking fun at Gillian Keegan after she was caught criticising her colleagues in a sweary rant.

The education secretary was recorded complaining that no one had thanked her for doing a “f*****g good job”.

Maria Eagle, Labour MP for Garston & Halewood, said the Conservatives were not known “for their self-awareness” or “connection to real life or humility.”

Christian Wakefield, the Bury South MP, said: “If this is doing a good job, I’d hate to see what sitting on your arse looks like.”

Barry Gardiner, the MP for Brent North, said: “So reassuring to know precisely what Gillian Keegan thinks of her predecessors: @kitmalthouse and @JamesCleverly”.

Review of concrete risk in Scotland will take ‘some months’ - Yousaf

Monday 4 September 2023 14:33 , Matt Mathers

First minister Humza Yousaf has said a desk-based review of collapse-prone concrete will likely take “some months”, but has stressed that mitigations will be put in place where there is risk.

The Scottish government confirmed that reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) was found in 35 schools across Scotland, with local authorities in the process of checking other buildings.

But that review would take some time to complete, the first minister has said

Full report:

Review of concrete risk in Scotland will take ‘some months’, says Yousaf

Watch: Hot mic records Gillian Keegan saying others ‘have been sat on their a***s’ amid schools Raac crisis

Monday 4 September 2023 14:05 , Martha Mchardy

Education secretary Gillian Keegan was caught on camera saying others “have been sat on their a***s” amid the Raac crisis.

She also shared frustration about not being thanked for doing a “f***ing good job dealing with the crisis.

The comments were picked up while the education secretary was still wearing a microphone after an interview with ITV News.

‘Extremely difficult’ to identify crumbling concrete that is leading to school closures, says expert

Monday 4 September 2023 13:54 , Martha Mchardy

It is “extremely difficult” to identify the crumbling concrete that is leading to the closure of schools, according to Dr John Roberts, who was president of the Institution of Structural Engineers in the early 2000s.

“I think you need to have quite an amount of structural engineering knowledge to identify this material,” he told the World At One.

“It’s not normally directly visible.”

Asked whether there needs to be a wider audit of public buildings, he said: “I can’t see why they are unlikely to be limited just to schools. They’re quite likely to be in a whole range of other public and perhaps private commercial buildings.

“But typically they provide the structure for a flat roof, so that would be the place that you would start looking for it if you wanted to be sure.”

Asked whether manufacturers of the material should be held to account, he said they have all gone out of business and no longer exist.

Sunak must ‘come clean’ about school repair decisions, says Labour

Monday 4 September 2023 13:40 , Adam Forrest

Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said Rishi Sunak must “come clean” about decisions he took on the school repairs budget.

The Labour frontbencher said the PM had now revealed what many parents feared – that the crisis “affects many more schools than they were initially led to believe”.

Ms Phillipson – who has kept her job in the reshuffle – said: “The decisions he took directly as chancellor to drastically cut the number of schools to be rebuilt are there in black and white, in a spending review he signed off, and have put children directly at risk from this dangerous form of concrete, which should have been replaced.”

“It’s time that this Conservative government – including the prime minister, came clean about which schools are affected, what they knew about this dangerous concrete, and the decisions they took which have seen more than a hundred close.

If they don’t, Labour will force a vote to release the information in the House of Commons.”

Capital spending on schools has fallen, says top economists

Monday 4 September 2023 13:35 , Martha Mchardy

The respected Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think tank said the average capital spending on schools has fallen by around a quarter in real-terms since the mid-2000s – and is 50 per cent below its 2010 peak.

Spending on school buildings is low in historical terms and low compared with levels of need,” said IFS research fellow Luke Sibieta.

The National Audit Office reported that the Department for Education calculated it needed about £5.3bn per year from 2021 to 2025 in order to maintain school buildings and mitigate risks.

It instead requested about £4bn per year based on the rate at which it could increase spending. HM Treasury allocated only about £3.1bn per year.

No 10 rejects claim Sunak cut school repairs budget

Monday 4 September 2023 13:30 , Adam Forrest

Downing Street has rejected the claim made by Jonathan Slater – who served as top civil servant at the Department for Education (DfE) for four years until August 2020 – that Rishi Sunak halved the schools repairs budget in 2021.

Mr Slater said the DfE got funding to repair 100 a year while he was the senior official, which was then cut to 50 by Mr Sunak when he was chancellor. But Mr Sunak has said 50 a year was “completely in line with what we have always done.”

Asked about the claim, Mr Sunak’s official spokesman said: “One of the first things he did when he became chancellor was announced the new school rebuilding programme which committed to 500 school projects over 10 years.

“That’s 50 schools a year – that was delivered in 2020. That was reaffirmed in 2021. That was not reduced in that sense.”

Asked if the government allowed affordability to overrule need, the PM’s spokesman said: “No.”

No 10 also said the repairs work would come out of the DfE’s capital spending budget, rather than any new money from the Treasury.

Review of concrete risk in Scotland will take ‘some months’, says Yousaf

Monday 4 September 2023 13:22 , Martha Mchardy

First minister Humza Yousaf has said a desk-based review of collapse-prone concrete will likely take “some months”, but has stressed that mitigations will be put in place where there is risk.

The Scottish Government confirmed that reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) was found in 35 schools across Scotland, with local authorities in the process of checking other buildings.

But that review would take some time to complete, the First minister has said.

Mr Yousaf said: “It was important to do the desk-based review, but it’s also fair to say that where NHS sites, in particular, feel there needs to be a physical investigation, then there will be a physical investigation if that’s required.

“Given the size of the estate we’re looking at, not just the NHS but the public sector estate, it will take some months to complete that fully.

“But, of course, it’s not a binary, it’s an evolving picture,” he added, claiming that “appropriate mitigations” will be put in place when the concrete is found.

The First minister’s comments come the day after one of his ministers said there was “no immediate risk” to the public concerning Raac.

Speaking to the BBC’s Sunday Show, Wellbeing Economy Secretary Neil Gray said: “At the moment, there is no immediate risk to people using these buildings and that is why we continue to support our local authority partners, NHS boards and others, that have Raac in their buildings to ensure that remains the case, and if there are issues to be resolved, that mitigations are taken to ensure people’s safety.”

Concrete crisis could influence which schools parents choose for children, says headteacher

Monday 4 September 2023 13:15 , Martha Mchardy

Luke Whitney, headteacher at Mayflower Primary School in Leicester, which is partially closed due to Raac, also said that the issue could influence which schools parents choose for their children.

The school is one of the highest-performing in the country, with Mr Whitney adding that the challenge for his staff was to ensure that despite the logistical changes caused by Raac, the quality of education remained the same.

He said: “As professional educators, we need to make sure that we do all we can to ensure consistency and high-quality education for our children.

“I think the difficulty if you compare this to what happened during Covid, all schools were in the same position, now it’s a very small number of schools. It could be the case that those schools are being viewed as a less favourable option than a school to parents than a school that doesn’t have Raac.

“So what we need to do is to put all our efforts into maintaining the quality of education, the standards our children reach, as we are one of the highest performing schools in the country.

“That becomes our challenge, and resilience is all about giving children a sense of agency, helping children to recognise that they are living through a moment in history and that all of the grown-ups and the community are there to support them to do their best, and I have every confidence in our children.”

Downing Street denies Sunak responsible for crumbling schools

Monday 4 September 2023 12:39 , Matt Mathers

Asked if Rishi Sunak accepted partial blame for the crumbling concrete row, Downing Street defended his record.

Mr Sunak "set out a significant, funded programme of school rebuilding when he became chancellor and maintained that in 2021", the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said.

"At the same time, he invested £5 billion to help children catch up from lost learning caused by Covid.

"What we have seen over a number of years, and indeed decades, is our understanding of the challenges posed by Raac evolve and as the expert advice has changed so has the Government altered its approach.

"That’s what you saw in advance of the September term starting."

Durham mother ‘devastated’ daughter not returning to school as expected

Monday 4 September 2023 11:48 , Matt Mathers

A mother in Durham said she was "absolutely devastated" to learn that her daughter would not be returning to school as expected because it had been constructed using reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), saying "that means juggling childcare, juggling work".

Jill Simpson, 51, received an email on Friday from the school trust advising St Leonard’s Catholic School would not be reopening as planned because a survey found RAAC panels had been used in its construction. The school later confirmed teaching would be done online for the foreseeable future.

Ms Simpson, whose daughter is starting Year 10, told the PA news agency: "I think the government should have jumped on this as soon as they found out. As soon as Raac was found in the schools, there should have been things put in place.

"I just think we could have heard something sooner. Why wait until literally four days before they are due to go back to school? It’s not fair on the children not to know where they stand.

"My daughter’s grades are slipping due to loss of school and teachers’ strikes and Covid, so we now have to get a private tutor for maths for her to start with to bump her grades back up."

More parents at Crossflatts Primary School in Bradford ‘happy’ at children returning

Monday 4 September 2023 11:25 , Matt Mathers

One mother, who did not want to be identified, said: "They’ve just closed down sections and are using Portakabins, and they’re using the hall too.

"We’re as happy as we can be with the situation. It’s not the school’s fault and it’s just a relief that they’re back in."

Another mother said: "The head has done an amazing job keeping everyone informed.

"And we’ve got WhatsApp groups for each year, which has meant everything has gone as smooth as it can realistically.

"I think it would’ve been a different matter if kids had had to be taken to a different school or taught at home. Let’s just be thankful for that."

Tories turning on Keegan over response to RAAC scandal - report

Monday 4 September 2023 11:10 , Matt Mathers

Tories are turning on education secretary Gillian Keegan over her response to the RAAC scandal, according to a report.

Bloomberg’s Alex Wickham says Ms Keegan’s colleagues are annoyed at the timing of school closures , her absence from TV screens over the weekend, “followed by breezy round today” and a lack of info on “which schools are affected, or when they’ll be fixed.”

The department for education first raised the alarm about RAAC on Thursday - days before the start of the new term.

Watch: Keegan says schools won’t pay for RAAC repairs

Monday 4 September 2023 10:46 , Matt Mathers

Hundreds more schools could be affected by RAAC - Keegan

Monday 4 September 2023 10:29 , Matt Mathers

Gillian Keegan said hundreds more schools could be affected by the RAAC crisis which has forced more than 100 to close so far.

Pressed on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, the education secretary said “it could be hundreds more”, adding that she has “taken a very cautious approach”.

She also sought to defend the Conservatives’ record when challenged over cuts to school rebuilding.

It was put to her that, while senior officials recommended 300-400 schools be rebuilt every year, the Government initially funded 100 a year and Rishi Sunak cut that to 50 a year when he was chancellor, years after ministers were warned about the risks of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete RAAC

She said: "I’ve just announced 239 school rebuilding projects", but could not indicate how many a year, saying only "as soon as possible".

Parent ‘happy’ children back at school despite RAAC issues

Monday 4 September 2023 10:01 , Matt Mathers

Outside Crossflatts Primary School in Bingley, West Yorkshire, parent Mohammad Ali said it is a relief that all the children are back despite the reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) issues.

Mr Ali said: "We’re happy because the kids are very happy and have been looking forward to coming back to school after six weeks.

"The school has told us all the problems and has kept us informed."

Sunak cut spending on school rebuilding as chancellor - Labour

Monday 4 September 2023 09:45 , Matt Mathers

Labour has doubled down on its bid to personally link Rishi Sunak with the RAAC crisis which has forced more than 100 schools to close, Archie Mitchell reports.

Analysis by the party, based on figures from the National Audit Office, showed spending on school rebuilding in 2019-20 was £765 million, but after Sunak became chancellor this dropped to £560 million in 2020-21 and as little as £416 million in 2021-22, a fall of 41 per cent overall.

Labour said the cuts came despite warnings from the Department for Education that the cost of returning schools to satisfactory conditions would double between 2015-16 and 2020-21.

It came a day after the party launched its latest attack ad, claiming Mr Sunak does not think schools should be safe.

Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “Rishi Sunak bears huge culpability for his role in this debacle: he doubled down on Michael Gove’s decision to axe Labour’s schools rebuilding programme and now the chickens have come home to roost – with yet more disruption to children’s education.

“Labour warned time and again about the risks posed by the crumbling schools estate under the Conservatives but were met with complacency, obstinacy and inaction.”

Cuts to school building programme not to blame for RAAC scandal - Keegan

Monday 4 September 2023 09:30 , Matt Mathers

Education secretary Gillian Keegan sought to defend the Conservatives’ record when challenged over cuts to school rebuilding.

It was put to her on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that, while senior officials recommended 300-400 schools be rebuilt every year, the government initially funded 100 a year and Rishi Sunak cut that to 50 a year when he was chancellor, years after ministers were warned about the risks of RAAC

She said: "I’ve just announced 239 school rebuilding projects", but could not indicate how many a year, saying only "as soon as possible".

She said the Department for Education is going "over and above" what it needs to do, stressing that "responsible bodies" are ultimately responsible for the buildings.

"We’ve delivered much better value for money, much more schools have been rebuilt, much more schools are going to be rebuilt, we’ve got a grip of Raac," she said.

Rishi Sunak was warned of ‘critical risk to life’ in school concrete crisis two years ago

Monday 4 September 2023 09:05 , Matt Mathers

Rishi Sunak was warned of a “critical risk to life” from crumbling schools when he was chancellor, it has been claimed.

Jonathan Slater, the former head of the Department for Education, said officials were aware of the need to rebuild between 300 and 400 schools a year while Mr Sunak occupied No 11 Downing Street in 2021.

Mr Slater told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme DfE was denied the funding to fix the schools.

“It was frustrating,” Mr Slater said.

Archie Mitchell reports:

Sunak warned of ‘critical risk to life’ in school concrete crisis two years ago

We’ll publish full list of affected schools this week - Keegan

Monday 4 September 2023 08:47 , Matt Mathers

Education secretary Gillian Keegan has vowed to publish a list of the schools affected by the concrete crisis this week.

Asked whether it is possible that parents will send their children to a school without knowing it is on the list, she told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: "Well, we’re hoping that’s not the case, because we’ve spoken via the caseworker with each one of the schools and we’ve given them the template (letter to inform parents) and we’re just going to double-check that.

"We will publish the list, but I do want to double-check that the school has had the opportunity - because not all the schools are back yet - to tell all parents."

Pressed further, she said: "We’ll publish it this week."

Breaking: 1,500 schools yet to return RAAC surveys

Monday 4 September 2023 08:32 , Matt Mathers

About 1,500 schools in England have not yet returned RAAC surveys, meaning they could- potentially be affected by the dangerous concrete, the education secretary has said.

More to follow...

104 schools classed as ‘critical’ - Keegan

Monday 4 September 2023 08:16 , Matt Mathers

Some 104 schools out of the 156 identified by the government as being affected by RAAC are classed as “critical”, the education secretary has said.

Gillian Keegan told BBC Breakfast the 104 schools were being examined as a matter of urgency and emergency procedures for structures have been put in place.

The education secretary told BBC Breakfast: "There’s 104 that are not mitigated that are being mitigated right now. So that’s how many are affected."

Their status changed to critical after an incident in August where a panel fell from a roof that had previously been assessed as non-critical, she said.

She said 52 that had already been classed as critical were already "done". Potentially hundreds of surveys still need to be done, Ms Keegan said.

Propping companies being sent in to hold up crumbling schools - education secretary

Monday 4 September 2023 07:56 , Matt Mathers

A national “propping” company is being sent to schools affected by crumbling concrete to help support structures in buildings at risk, the education secretary has said.

Gillian Keegan also told BBC Breakfast that eight surveying companies are now examining schools across the country potentially affected by dangerous reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

Three temporary accommodation companies are also working with the government and schools affected, she added.

“Normally we wouldn’t do this - the responsible bodies would do it - but to make it much more efficient, we’ve centrally taken that on board,” she told the programme.

No immediate risk to safety of pupils in schools, Scottish minister says

Monday 4 September 2023 07:23 , Shweta Sharma

Public buildings in Scotland containing reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) pose an “immediate risk to safety” to school pupils and hospital patients, a Scottish government minister has said.

Wellbeing economy secretary Neil Gray said investigations are underway to assess the scale of buildings in Scotland containing the collapse-risk concrete.

The Scottish government has said the lightweight concrete is present in 35 schools in Scotland, with local authorities checking which other buildings it was used on, including hospitals and social housing.

Speaking on BBC Scotland’s The Sunday Show programme, Mr Gray said: “At the moment, there is no immediate risk to people using these buildings and that is why we continue to support our local authority partners, NHS boards and others, that have Raac in their buildings to ensure that remains the case, and if there are issues to be resolved, that mitigations are taken to ensure people’s safety.”

Labour revives attack ads claiming concrete scandal shows Rishi Sunak does not want schools to be safe

Monday 4 September 2023 06:37 , Shweta Sharma

Labour has revived its controversial attack ads – this time using the concrete scandal to claim Rishi Sunak does not think schools should be safe.

It comes as over 100 schools were told to partially or fully shut buildings over fears that dangerous concrete could collapse, plunging the start of the new academic year into chaos.

The attack advert, posted on social media yesterday, is a re-working of a controversial graphic pushed out to voters by the party from earlier in the year.

Latest Labour attack ad claims Rishi Sunak does not want schools to be safe

Education department ‘in complete chaos’ as concrete crisis mounts

Monday 4 September 2023 05:52 , Shweta Sharma

Ministers are under pressure to spell out their plans to make schools safe from aerated concrete as pupils start the new term.

Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said it is a “scandal that as children are just returning to school ministers are still not being upfront about the scale of what we are facing”.

“It’s vital that they publish the list of all the schools as soon as possible,” she said.

“If they don’t do that, we’ll force a vote in the House of Commons to make sure that parents can know exactly what’s going on.

“This is completely unacceptable, children have seen so much disruption to their education and ministers need to get a grip on this because this is a department that is in complete chaos.”

Parents still in dark on concrete crisis as pupils return to school despite ‘thousands more buildings at risk’

Monday 4 September 2023 05:30 , Shweta Sharma

Parents are still in the dark as millions of pupils return to school this week despite fears that “thousands” more buildings are at risk of collapse from crumbling concrete.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt yesterday refused to be drawn on how many buildings were affected as he rejected accusations that government cuts were to blame.

He insisted that the government had acted to close more than 100 schools known to have the potentially dangerous reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) as soon as they were alerted – but ministers are no closer to revealing the full list, despite repeated calls to do so.

It comes as Labour launched a stinging assault on the PM by reviving its controversial attack ads to this time claim the scandal showed Rishi Sunak did not want schools to be safe.

Asked about an estimate that as many as 7,000 schools could be affected, Mr Hunt told the BBC he did not want to “speculate on these numbers” so as to avoid comments that “might scare people unnecessarily”.

Parents still in dark on concrete crisis as millions of pupils return to school

Editorial: Crumbling schools have become a symbol of Tory incompetence

Monday 4 September 2023 05:08 , Shweta Sharma

As the Commons returns from its six-week summer break today, Rishi Sunak’s much-trailed “reset” has got off to an inauspicious start. Schools in England are also due back but many pupils, parents and teachers faced an anxious wait over the weekend to find out whether their schools will operate normally. It emerged this summer that the reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete used in the construction of buildings between the 1950s and 1990s is more dangerous than previously thought.

There is growing evidence that ministers brushed aside warnings about the problem following the partial collapse of a secondary school roof in Kent in 2018, which thankfully happened over a weekend.

The temptation to kick the can down the road was too great – an example of the costly short-termism that afflicts our politicians.

Read The Independent’s editorial.

Editorial: Crumbling schools have become a symbol of Tory incompetence

What schools will have to close because of crumbling RAAC?

Monday 4 September 2023 04:56 , Shweta Sharma

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, though Scottish first minister Humza Yousaf said on Saturday there were no plans to close schools there “at this stage”.

Concrete closure list: The schools affected by crumbling RAAC so far

Not all RAAC buildings will be impacted, says expert

Monday 4 September 2023 04:40 , Shweta Sharma

Uncertainties and questions mounting over plans to make schools safe from aerated concrete as pupils start the new term as the government is yet to reveal the full scale of the crisis.

A construction expert has said the closure will depend on case-by-case basis.

“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,” Tim Seal, Head of Construction at law firm Ridgemont, says.He said the government has been managing the risks associated with RAAC since around 2018 by providing guidance 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,” he adds.“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.”

Education secretary to face media for first time since school crisis

Monday 4 September 2023 04:20 , Shweta Sharma

Education secretary Gillian Keegan will face the morning broadcast round this morning for the first time since a crumbling concrete crisis.

She will also address the parliament this week about the government’s plans to address the issue of school closures.

DfE said she will inform the parliament “of the plan to keep parents and the public updated on the issue”.

Ms Keegan said disruption caused by the crisis should last “days, not weeks” even in cases where pandemic-style remote learning was made necessary due to building closures.

ICYMI: Revealed: Obese patients treated on hospital ground floor because of fears of crumbling concrete collapse

Monday 4 September 2023 04:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Obese patients are being treated on the ground floor of a hospital because of fears that floors above them made of crumbling concrete could collapse.

The shocking disclosure has been made after a group of MPs visited the hospital, built with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

Labour MP Meg Hillier, chair of the Commons Public Accounts Committee, described what the MPs discovered as “jaw-dropping”.

Read more:

Obese patients treated on hospital ground floor because of concrete collapse fears

The RAAC concrete ‘ticking time bomb’ that schools were warned about years ago

Monday 4 September 2023 03:00 , Eleanor Noyce

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.

Now, more than 100 schools, nurseries and colleges in England have been told by the government to close classrooms and other buildings that contain aerated concrete that is prone to collapse.

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

Alexander Butler reports:

The RAAC concrete ‘ticking time bomb’ that schools were warned about years ago

Hunt: We will spend what it make to make schools safe from crumbling concrete

Monday 4 September 2023 02:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Jeremy Hunt has said the government will “spend what it takes” to make schools safe after classrooms were forced to close just before the new term amid concerns about crumbling concrete.

The Chancellor moved to reassure parents that an “exhaustive process” has been carried out to identify any unsafe buildings, amid accusations ministers failed to act quickly enough to mitigate risks raised in 2018.

But he admitted that along with the potential danger of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), there are concerns about the possibility of a “wider” problem with asbestos in schools.

He said education secretary Gillian Keegan had “acted immediately” after new information came to light over the summer about the potential risk Raac, a lightweight material used up to the mid-1990s.

Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg show, Mr Hunt would not speculate on the potential cost of fixing the problem, but said: “We will spend what it takes to make sure children can go to school safely, yes.”

Children’s commissioner Rachel de Souza welcomed the funding pledge but said “we shouldn’t even have been in this situation”.

She told the same programme: “Is it really the least to ask to say that we want safe, fit-for-purpose buildings? There’s not enough money in there and it’s not moving quick enough.”

School closures not a return to ‘dark days of lockdowns’, says Gillian Keegan

Monday 4 September 2023 01:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Education secretary Gillian Keegan has told parents the closure of classrooms due to fears over crumbling lightweight concrete is “not a return to the dark days of school lockdowns”.

More than 100 schools and colleges have been told by the Department for Education to fully or partially shut buildings due to the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), following the collapse of a beam last week.

Schools minister Nick Gibb admitted more classrooms could be forced to shut as schools prepare to head back for the start of the new school year.

Writing in The Sun on Sunday, the education secretary said there was “no choice” other than to make closures after a “handful of cases” where Raac had failed.

She said: “We all have to make difficult decisions in life and responsible government is about getting them right. That means looking at evidence and acting, even when the trade-offs are significant.

“That’s the position I faced when new evidence was presented to me indicating concrete which forms part of certain school buildings was no longer safe.

“I want to reassure families that this is not a return to the dark days of school lockdowns.”

She continued: “I understand the anxiety that this has caused parents, particularly those with children directly impacted, so soon after the disruption caused by the pandemic.

“But this is not pandemic school closures, and certainly not a return to extended home learning.”

She said home learning has only been required “for days, not weeks” in the minority of 52 schools and colleges which have required work.

Government under pressure to reveal list of schools hit by concrete crisis

Monday 4 September 2023 00:01 , Eleanor Noyce

School closures forcing children out of classrooms is “not a return to the dark days of school lockdowns”, the education secretary has insisted as she faces pressure to set out plans to deal with crumbling lightweight concrete in buildings.

The Department for Education (DfE) said Gillian Keegan is due to inform Parliament on Monday “of the plan to keep parents and the public updated on the issue”.

Ms Keegan said disruption caused by the crisis should last “days, not weeks” even in cases where pandemic-style remote learning was made necessary due to building closures.

Writing in The Sun On Sunday, the education secretary said there was “no choice” other than to make closures after a “handful of cases” where Raac had failed.

She said: “We all have to make difficult decisions in life and responsible government is about getting them right. That means looking at evidence and acting, even when the trade-offs are significant.

“That’s the position I faced when new evidence was presented to me indicating concrete which forms part of certain school buildings was no longer safe.

“I want to reassure families that this is not a return to the dark days of school lockdowns.”

She added that a “minority” will have to teach pupils off-site or remotely but the department would fund temporary classrooms to maintain face-to-face learning.

ICYMI: Jeremy Hunt says government will ‘take action immediately’ on risks in schools

Sunday 3 September 2023 23:20 , Eleanor Noyce

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said on Sunday that the government will “take action immediately” on any risks in schools, as he was questioned over unsafe concrete and possible asbestos in public buildings.

Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips on Sky News about reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), he said: “The government will take action immediately when we know there is any kind of risk.”

He added: “As soon as problems have been identified we’ve started a huge survey of every single school in the country so we could identify where these problems are.

“And I think it’s very important to reassure parents that where there is an issue as soon as we find out about it we will act.”

“We will do what it takes to make sure that children are safe,” he told the programme, adding later “we will prioritise spending money to sort out these problems where that needs to happen”.

Labour ‘concerned’ over lack of funds to fix crumbling concrete

Sunday 3 September 2023 22:59 , Eleanor Noyce

Labour said it was concerned that plans to fund school repairs within the Department for Education’s existing budget could leave less money available for other necessary measures.

Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “My concern is that it sounds like the government intend to fund some of the mitigation work from the existing capital budget. That could then have an impact on other measures that need to happen within schools whether it’s addressing asbestos or the wider school rebuilding programme.

“I think it would be completely unfair if the government are raiding the capital budget in order to fund these kinds of mitigations when the only reason we’re in this position in the first place is because the government hasn’t had a proper rebuilding programme”.

‘No extra cash’ to fix collapse-prone classrooms despite Hunt’s promises

Sunday 3 September 2023 22:25 , Eleanor Noyce

Despite Jeremy Hunt’s promises to “spend what it takes” to make classrooms safe amidst a crumbling concrete crisis, the Treasury has said there is “no extra cash” to fix classrooms prone to collapse.

Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg show, Mr Hunt would not speculate on the potential cost of fixing the problem, but said: “We will spend what it takes to make sure children can go to school safely, yes.”

However, Whitehall sources reported that additional costs for headteachers, including transport to alternative schools and catering, will not be covered by central government, according to reports in The Guardian.

Former Home Secretary Priti Patel urged the government to offer money to schools struggling amidst the crisis, noting in an interview with The Guardian that “many of the affected schools are maintained local authority schools and single academy trusts which cannot afford the costs of repairs.”

‘No extra money’ to fix school concrete crisis

Sunday 3 September 2023 22:00 , Natalie Crockett

There is no extra funding to help schools cover the costs of fixing the concrete crisis, despite the chancellor promising to pick up the bill.

Jeremy Hunt told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that he would not speculate on the potential cost of fixing the issue, but insisted: “We will spend what it takes to make sure children can go to school safely, yes.”

But Treasury sources say any money must be covered by existing Department for Education budgets and not from additional funds, The Guardian reports.

Whitehall sources said schools, academies and local authorities forced to bus their pupils to alternative sites would also not be given extra cash.

The one beam that has forced over 100 schools to close

Sunday 3 September 2023 21:20 , Eleanor Noyce

A minister has revealed that just one collapsed beam at a school sparked the emergency decision to halt the return to classrooms for over 100 schools.

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”.

Read more:

What is RAAC concrete? How to tell if school buildings are at risk of collapse

Sunday 3 September 2023 20:40 , Eleanor Noyce

More than 100 schools, nurseries and colleges in England have been told by the government to close classrooms and other buildings that contain aerated concrete that is prone to collapse.

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

Read more:

What is RAAC concrete? How to tell if school buildings are at risk of collapse

‘A nightmare’: Inside one of first schools closed over crumbling concrete scandal

Sunday 3 September 2023 20:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Because of a quirk of tradition, the summer holidays end a week earlier in Leicester than in the rest of the country.

So when the government announced on Thursday that 156 schools across the country were at risk of collapsing, one of those schools – Willowbrook Mead Primary Academy in the East Midlands city – was already full of children.

“My understanding is they literally evacuated the place,” said parent Raj Kaur on Friday. “The first most parents knew about it was when we arrived for pick-up. All the children were out on the field. It was awful. Children were crying. My first thought was, ‘Has something terrible happened?’”

More here:

‘A nightmare’: Inside one of first schools closed over crumbling concrete scandal

Concrete closure list: What schools will have to close because of crumbling RAAC?

Sunday 3 September 2023 19:20 , Eleanor Noyce

Calls have been made for the Department for Education (DfE) to release the full list of schools that have been ordered to close over safety fears.

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.

Read more:

Concrete closure list: The schools affected by crumbling RAAC so far

ICYMI: The RAAC concrete ‘ticking time bomb’ that schools were warned about years ago

Sunday 3 September 2023 18:40 , Eleanor Noyce

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.

Now, more than 100 schools, nurseries and colleges in England have been told by the government to close classrooms and other buildings that contain aerated concrete that is prone to collapse.

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

Alexander Butler reports:

The RAAC concrete ‘ticking time bomb’ that schools were warned about years ago

Revealed: Obese patients treated on hospital ground floor because of fears of crumbling concrete collapse

Sunday 3 September 2023 18:00 , Eleanor Noyce

Obese patients are being treated on the ground floor of a hospital because of fears that floors above them made of crumbling concrete could collapse.

The shocking disclosure has been made after a group of MPs visited the hospital, built with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

Labour MP Meg Hillier, chair of the Commons Public Accounts Committee, described what the MPs discovered as “jaw-dropping.”

Read more:

Obese patients treated on hospital ground floor because of concrete collapse fears

Parents still in the dark as millions of pupils to return to school despite ‘thousands more buildings at risk’

Sunday 3 September 2023 17:47 , Eleanor Noyce

Parents are still in the dark as millions of pupils return to school this week despite fears “thousands” more buildings are risk of collapse from crumbling concrete.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt on Sunday refused to be drawn on how many buildings were affected as he rejected accusations that government cuts were to blame.

Read more:

Parents still in the dark as millions of pupils to return to school

Labour revives attack ads claiming concrete scandal shows Rishi Sunak does not want schools to be safe

Sunday 3 September 2023 17:19 , Eleanor Noyce

Labour has revived its controversial attack ads – this time using the concrete scandal to claim Rishi Sunak does not think schools should be safe.

It comes as over 100 schools were told to partially or fully shut buildings over fears that dangerous concrete could collapse, plunging the start of the new academic year into chaos.

The attack advert, posted on social media on Sunday, is a re-working of a controversial graphic pushed out to voters by the party from earlier in the year.

Jon Stone has more:

Latest Labour attack ad claims Rishi Sunak does not want schools to be safe

No immediate risk to safety where Raac is found in Scotland, minister says

Sunday 3 September 2023 17:15 , Eleanor Noyce

Public buildings in Scotland containing reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) pose an “immediate risk to safety” to school pupils and hospital patients, a Scottish government minister has said.

Wellbeing economy secretary Neil Gray said investigations are under way to assess the scale of buildings in Scotland containing the collapse-risk concrete.

The Scottish Government has said the lightweight concrete is present in 35 schools in Scotland, with local authorities checking which other buildings it was used on, including hospitals and social housing.

Speaking on BBC Scotland’s The Sunday Show programme, Mr Gray said: “At the moment, there is no immediate risk to people using these buildings and that is why we continue to support our local authority partners, NHS boards and others, that have Raac in their buildings to ensure that remains the case, and if there are issues to be resolved, that mitigations are taken to ensure people’s safety.”

The issue came to the fore after the UK government confirmed 104 schools in England will close due to the presence of the material, which was linked to the collapse of a primary school roof in Kent in 2018.

The concrete was used from the 1950s until the mid-1990s, with the Institute of Structural Engineers saying it will only need to be replaced if it is considered to be of poor condition and at high-risk of collapse.

Mr Gray said: “There is no reason to believe that the safety concern has changed in the previous weeks. Obviously there are checks ongoing, including intrusive checks, because obviously some of this material is going to be deep into the structure of buildings. Some of that takes time to carry out.”

First Minister Humza Yousaf said on Saturday that Scottish ministers have no plans to close affected schools “at this stage”.

Local authorities will be expected to prioritise remedial work where the concrete is found in public buildings, including room or building closures and the use of temporary modular provision for school pupils.

Hunt: We will ‘spend what it takes’ to make schools safe from crumbling concrete

Sunday 3 September 2023 16:44 , Eleanor Noyce

Jeremy Hunt has said the government will “spend what it takes” to make schools safe after classrooms were forced to close just before the new term amid concerns about crumbling concrete.

The chancellor moved to reassure parents that an “exhaustive process” has been carried out to identify any unsafe buildings, amid accusations ministers failed to act quickly enough to mitigate risks raised in 2018.

But he admitted that along with the potential danger of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), there are concerns about the possibility of a “wider” problem with asbestos in schools.

He said education secretary Gillian Keegan had “acted immediately” after new information came to light over the summer about the potential risk Raac, a lightweight material used up to the mid-1990s.

Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg show, Mr Hunt would not speculate on the potential cost of fixing the problem, but said: “We will spend what it takes to make sure children can go to school safely, yes.”

Updated: Which schools are affected by RAAC?

Sunday 3 September 2023 16:15 , Matt Mathers

Below is a running list of the schools in England currently on the “crumbling building”:

Concrete closure list: The schools affected by crumbling RAAC so far

ICYMI: Jeremy Hunt insists ministers acted fast on crumbling schools crisis despite warnings years ago

Sunday 3 September 2023 15:55 , Matt Mathers

The chancellor has insisted ministers acted on crumbling schools at risk of collapse as they were told of dangers, despite evidence the government was warned years ago.

Jeremy Hunt on Sunday denied that the government’s austerity programme was to blame for the state of the buildings, while Labour accused the Tories of “negligence”.

Jon Stone has the full report:

Jeremy Hunt insists ministers acted fast on crumbling schools crisis

Click here to read the full blog on The Independent's website