Labour MPs sound alarm: the crumbling concrete in a few of Britain’s schools

Last week, the Conservative government announced that 100 schools in Britain were affected by crumbling concrete and that some would have to close temporarily.

This type of cement is called reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete, or Raac (pron. ‘Rack’). It looks like the inside of an Aero bar.

One wonders why Raac was suddenly discovered only days before schools were to reopen. Whoever is responsible had since the latter part of July to uncover this unfortunate state of affairs.

The Department for Education made the announcement early last week and since then Labour MPs have taken advantage of the situation to say that the Government does not care about children or their education.

However, is there not a local council responsibility that has been overlooked here?

On Friday, September 1, 2023, The Guardian told us more about Raac, complete with photographs (emphases mine):

The lightweight construction material, predominantly found in roofs, was only ever given a usable lifespan of about 30 years. It was put into schools and other public buildings from the 1950s to the mid-1990s, meaning that more or less all instances of it are now officially deemed not fully safe.

The government says expert advice has changed and that in the 1990s it was believed that even time-expired Raac was not a risk.

Since the roof of a primary school in Kent collapsed in 2018, there have been repeated warnings and calls for action, with the Local Government Association, which represents councils, highlighting the issue repeatedly to members.

In 2021 and last year, the Office of Government Property (OGP) sent out a formal warning notice about Raac, stressing that the material was “now life-expired and liable to collapse” and highlighting how collapses had happened in schools with minimal or no notice.

The Department for Education (DfE) has been preparing contingency plans for schools since then. Some experts say much more should have been done earlier.

Geoff Wilkinson, a senior building inspector, said: “The risk has been known about for decades. There should have been an ongoing maintenance plan for these buildings to be upgraded and replaced over the last 40 years. They are all past their serviceable lifetime. It’s shocking to discover that the maintenance plan wasn’t in place and there hadn’t been a programme of demolitions” …

Last year, the DfE sent a questionnaire to schools, councils, academy trusts and others, asking them to assess the amount of Raac used across their buildings. The DfE has not specified how many were sent out, but officials say 90% have been returned.

The department also sent structural engineers to some sites to gauge the amount of Raac and its condition. The engineers were instructed to rate the risk of failure for any Raac construction, ranging from critical – meaning the relevant rooms, blocks or buildings should be immediately closed – to high, medium or low.

This year, the National Audit Office said that of 14,900 schools potentially having Raac, 6,300 had told the DfE they had completed work to identify it. In July, the DfE said 300 schools had thus far had on-site inspections …

To confirm its presence, extensive works are required, involving the removal of false ceilings and asbestos to get to the material, requiring specialist asbestos contractors and scaffolding.

As one would expect, Raac was used not only in schools but also in other public buildings:

So far, 24 hospitals in England have been found to have Raac-based construction in some or all parts, seven of which require full rebuilding under the government’s hospital construction programme.

Four Department for Work and Pensions buildings are known to be affected, as well as seven courts, one of which is now not being used. More surveys across government buildings are taking place.

Labour are laying the blame on Conservatives, but, depending on when the Raac structures were built, they, too, bear responsibility.

That is what TalkTV/Radio presenter Julia Hartley-Brewer said to the Shadow Leader of the House Thangam Debbonaire on Monday, September 4:

The discussion revolved around whether Labour knew about risks of RAAC concrete in schools when they were in power:

Thangam: “The Government knew in 2018!”

Julia: “The Labour Government knew in 1997!”

That’s all you need to know.

That day, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer reshuffled the shadow cabinet. Guido Fawkes has all the details. Thangam Debbonaire is now Shadow Culture Secretary. Lucy Powell replaces her as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons.