School bosses yet to complete reports into presence of dodgy concrete told to ‘get off their backsides’ and do it
SCHOOL bosses who have still not completed reports into the possible presence of dodgy concrete were last night told to “get off your backsides” and do it.
Embattled Education Secretary Gillian Keegan issued the order to local authorities and trusts yet to reveal the state of their buildings as it emerged that up to 1,100 schools may be affected.
It comes as The Sun can reveal how frantic teachers at blighted schools are begging parents to get in touch if they have a contact in any portable toilet or temporary classroom firms so they can fully open.
Fears were growing last night that tens of thousands more pupils face returning to classrooms with Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (Raac) not yet identified.
One in 20 school bodies, such as councils and trusts, have failed to tell ministers if they have any.
The laggards have been given until Friday to return surveys to the Department for Education — 18 months after they received them.
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Ms Keegan, who earlier this week let rip at those who have “sat on their arse and done nothing”, yesterday doubled down with a stern wake-up call for sluggish schools.
She told Jeremy Vine on BBC Radio 2: “The annoying bit, and this was probably a bit of my frustration yesterday, is despite asking since March 2020, there’s five per cent of schools or responsible bodies that have not responded to the survey.
“Now, hopefully all this publicity will make them get off their backsides. But what I would like them to do is to respond because I want to be the Secretary of State that knows exactly in every school where there is Raac and takes action.”
Ms Keegan said she has written to the unresponsive bodies “quite a few times” but has heard nothing back.
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PM Rishi Sunak got behind his under-fire Education Secretary’s rallying cry to schools as his spokesman insisted “parents want reassurance on this”.
Raac was used in the construction of many public buildings between the 1950s and 1990s, but only has a typical lifespan of around 30 years — after which it can deteriorate and requires monitoring by engineers.
In March last year, ministers asked all responsible bodies to complete a questionnaire on Raac levels.
Structural surveyors were sent to sites suspected to have the duff concrete, and of these 156 were given orders last week to make alternative arrangements for teaching.
The names of these impacted schools will be published this week, with No 10 suggesting it could grow as more return their surveys.
The five per cent of bodies yet to respond to the survey equates to roughly 1,100 schools.
Mr Sunak yesterday told his Cabinet that it was “right to prioritise safety” by closing schools just days before the start of the new term.
He said they had done everything possible to “minimise disruption” and stressed the “vast majority” of schools are not affected.
But the first week back after the summer holidays has been thrown into chaos for many, with teachers forced into drastic make-do arrangements.
We can reveal some headteachers have even been asking mums and dads for any Portaloos and Porta-kabins they own or know of.
Parents at one school received an eve-of-term appeal calling for temporary facilities as secondary school pupils attend lessons on a rotation basis due to lack of space.
The plea came as 16 classrooms were put out of use at Hadleigh High School in Suffolk as staff race to get their hands on alternative spaces.
A letter from head Nicola Shingleton and her boss Sarah Skinner from the Penrose Learning Trust reveal they are looking for 14 temporary buildings to enable them to re-open fully.
The pair say: “If anyone has contact with a portable toilet company or temporary classroom company, please would you contact me.”
The fallout of the scandal sees the school only being able to have three year groups on the premises at one time until the new facilities are in place.
The start of term was also delayed by a day for 11-year-olds.
Some parents will not know until next Monday when three other year groups are returning.
The letter added: “On behalf of the Trust, I would like to apologise for the disruption. The start of a new school year should be full of excitement, positivity and a celebration of the great results achieved by the school over the summer.
“Instead, we find ourselves scrabbling to ensure we can get all the students back to school as quickly as possible.”
They said that the issue has been caused by the change in policy which states no area can be used regardless of whether surveys found the Raac in place to be safe.
A cross-Whitehall taskforce has been set up to coordinate the response to Raac across government buildings.
Ms Keegan will face a grilling from MPs on September 19.
Downing Street has defended the PM’s record on school spending, and said an average of 50 schools were being rebuilt every year.
They denied reports that just four schools have been rebuilt, insisting this was the figure for one specific programme.
Hospitals RAAC test a priority
NHS chiefs yesterday told hospitals to check for Raac and draw up evacuation plans — while prisons are also being inspected for the crumbling concrete.
A letter sent to NHS managers said all hospital trusts should arrange “thorough” checks “as a matter of priority”.
Ministers have pledged £685million for hospitals with Raac issues, with the goal to remove all of it from the NHS by 2035.
At least 41 hospital buildings are affected, with Hinchingbrooke, Cambs, so concerned it has banned obese patients from being treated upstairs.
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Meanwhile, Charlie Taylor, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, warned that a lack of jail space is making the concrete scandal especially troubling for the sector.
He told Times Radio: “If Raac becomes an issue within prisons, it would be enormously concerning.”