Labour accused of ‘neglecting’ pupil safety in Wales as thousands of children set to return to school today unaware if their classrooms are at risk from faulty concrete
- The Welsh government has been urged to check its school buildings for RAAC
Labour was last night accused of ‘neglecting’ pupil safety in Wales as thousands of children return to school today not knowing whether their classrooms are safe.
The Welsh government has been urged to check its school buildings for the potentially dangerous reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) after concerns that the pace of work has been too slow.
While 104 schools in England have been told they are affected ahead of the new school term – with 24 of them ordered to shut entirely – none in Wales have heard if they are at risk despite an expert saying faulty concrete is likely to have been used.
The delay sparked Education Secretary Gillian Keegan to offer her department’s support on Saturday amid fears the task ‘will take some time’, the Mail can reveal.
In a letter to her devolved counterpart Jeremy Miles, the Education Secretary wrote: ‘I know you will be keen to ensure your programme is under way as quickly as possible given the uncertainty many children and parents will be feeling regarding the safety of school in Wales.
While 104 schools in England have been told they are affected ahead of the new school term – with 24 of them ordered to shut entirely – none in Wales have heard if they are at risk despite an expert saying faulty concrete is likely to have been used
The Welsh government has been urged to check its school buildings for the potentially dangerous reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) after concerns that the pace of work has been too slow
‘I appreciate it will take some time, so my team and I stand ready to support you as you seek to address this.’
Whitehall bosses were also left furious when Mr Miles failed to show up for a snap meeting to outline the situation in England, it is understood. Sending officials instead, one source said the minister ‘did not seem to be bothered’ by the crisis.
A second added: ‘Parents in Wales will be sending their children to schools unsure if their schools are safe. They’ve left schools without support and taken no action to identify where RAAC is on their estate.
‘The Labour-run Welsh government has been negligent in their duty to keep children safe.’
The Department for Education (DfE) began surveying schools in England for RAAC last year after part of the roof at Singlewell Primary in Gravesend, Kent, collapsed in 2018. In Wales work reportedly began in May this year.
Keith Jones, the director of the Institution of Civil Engineers Wales Cymru, told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast last week: ‘I would suspect that it is used [in Wales] … when you’re a designer, you’re a contractor, you won’t recognise ‘this is in England, this is in Wales’.’
Meanwhile, many pupils in England will begin the school year by learning online from home today in an echo of the huge disruption caused by the pandemic.
RAAC was used for many public buildings between the 1950s and mid-1990s and is prone to failure. It has been discovered in the roofs of dozens of hospital buildings, police stations, leisure centres and courts
Teachers spent the weekend scrambling for alternatives, erecting tented classrooms and bringing in festival-style toilets ahead of the start of term.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said the Government will ‘spend what it takes’ to make schools safe as the crisis threatened to engulf the public sector.
Dame Rachel De Souza, the Children’s Commissioner, vented her fury at a lack of planning that forced schools to shut just days before the start of the new term.
Appearing on the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme yesterday, she said: ‘I am extremely disappointed and frustrated that there was not a plan in place for this happening. The Government might not have known that it would happen this week, but we knew the stock was in this situation.’
She added: ‘There should have been planning in place and a really good school building programme that has addressed this over the years. ‘Is it really the least to ask to say that we want safe, fit for purpose buildings.
‘We need a far better grip on these issues that really affect children and young people.’
RAAC was used for many public buildings between the 1950s and mid-1990s and is prone to failure. It has been discovered in the roofs of dozens of hospital buildings, police stations, leisure centres and courts.
The Welsh government is expected to give an update on the presence of the concrete today. Pictured: A taped off section inside Parks Primary School in Leicester which has been affected with sub standard reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete
Public buildings containing RAAC have been deemed to pose no ‘immediate risk to safety’ to school pupils and hospital patients in Scotland. Pictured: Scaffolding is seen outside classrooms as repair work continues at Hornsey School for Girls in London
Meanwhile, public buildings containing RAAC have been deemed to pose no ‘immediate risk to safety’ to school pupils and hospital patients in Scotland.
The Welsh government is expected to give an update on the presence of the concrete today. A spokesman said: ‘We continue to work closely with the WLGA and local authorities and have been since March of this year.
‘We are also engaging urgently with engineers to carry out survey work to ascertain the presence of RAAC on school estates.
‘We want to reassure parents and carers, pupils will not be asked to come to school if we think there are concerns. We will provide an update on Monday.’
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