RAAC concrete school closures LIVE: Students being bussed to alternative sites on first day back to school amid mounting fears over unsafe material

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Pupils at Mayflower Primary School in Leicester are being bussed to an alternative site, due to the site being partially closed amid fears over reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC). 

The school originally shut entirely on April 24 and youngsters were taught across various sites for the remainder of the academic year as further assessments of the primary’s buildings continued. 

The institution has since partially reopened, with nursery and Key Stage 1 children being taught on site while KS2 pupils are bussed to a temporary location around two miles away. 

Amreen Sheikh, who has a seven-year-old and a nine-year-old at the school, said: ‘It was a bit of a headache before, for us and for the children. 

‘We were struggling because everything was new, the kids were used to being in school. Now we are used to it. 

‘The kids are fine now but before they found it difficult because they used to get travel sick.’ 

Daniel Kebede, General Secretary of the National Education Union, said the government is in ‘chaos’ over the RAAC school closure fiasco.

Speaking to Sky News this morning, Mr Kebede said Education Secretary Gillian Keegan’s comments to the press about the situation blighting schools had been ‘painful’.

‘She’s an education secretary clear under a lot of stress with a Department for Education that is in absolute disarray,’ he added.

‘We’re seeing them make up guidance very quickly; on the Thursday night they’re saying Portakabins won’t be funded. On the Friday morning they’re saying they will be funded… they’re contacting schools last-minute to inform them of closures. 

‘Last night I saw at 8.02pm on Twitter the Department for Education putting out a tweet requesting that school leaderships complete RAAC survey.  

‘This is not a government that’s in control. It’s a government of chaos.’

"This is not a government that's in control."@DanielKebedeNEU says the Department for Education is in "absolute disarray", issuing "last-minute" guidance over RAAC the day before the start of the new school term.

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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 reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC). 

The Education Secretary 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. 

List of schools fully or partially closed over RAAC safety fears as new term begins

As the new term begins, more than 100 schools and colleges in England have been told to partially or fully close buildings because of fears over concrete which could suddenly collapse.

Despite mounting pressure, the Government has refused to publicly reveal the 104 facilities which have been told to shut buildings, as thousands of pupils face a disrupted start to term.

Pupils in Essex are worst hit with at least 18 schools or collages said to be impacted. Here is a list of all those so far affected. 

Education secretary warns HUNDREDS more schools could face RAAC shutdown

Hundreds more schools could face shutdowns over crumbling concrete, Gillian Keegan has admitted – as term started today amid the chaos. 

The Education Secretary conceded huge uncertainty remains over a slew of questions as she faced a bruising round of interviews this morning.

Tens of thousands of children are heading back to classrooms in England this week despite councils still being in the dark about risks from RAAC – a lightweight form of concrete used between the 1950s and 1990s.

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