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04.09.2023 - 08:31 / manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Hundreds of UK schools could be built with dangerous 'crumbly concrete,' according to a government minister.
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has said at least 104 schools have confirmed reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) - but the actual number could be hundreds, with 1,500 schools still yet to return surveys.
It comes as a former senior civil servant slammed the government for 'halving funding for rebuilding schools'. Speaking on the BBC's Today programme, Jonathan Slater, who was the top civil servant at the Department for Education from May 2016 to August 2020, said then-chancellor Rishi Sunak slashed plans to rebuild 100 schools back in 2021.
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He said two surveys of RAAC in schools were carried out, and showed the the scale of the rebuilding programme needed. The lightweight material was used in roofs, floors and walls between the 1950s and 1990s, but poses a collapse risk.
The surveys showed 300 to 400 schools needed to be repaired per year, according to Mr Slater. The Treasury gave funding to rebuild 100 schools per year.
"It was frustrating when your priority was safety," he said.
Slater says the education department saw the benefits of the program but "the challenge was to face the chancellor".
In 2021, they reportedly asked the government to double the 100 schools to 200.
"We know 300 to 400 needed, but the actual ask in 2021 was to double the 100 to 200," he said. "I thought we'd get it but the actual decision made in 2021 was to halve down from 100 a year to 50 a year."
Speaking this morning, Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has said that around 10%, or 1,500 schools, are yet to return the surveys
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Schools, hospitals and a theatre in Greater Manchester have been identified as having dangerous crumbling concrete. Councils and social housing providers across the region are checking their estates for signs of the problem.
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West Lothian Council has already spent £53m tackling crumbling concrete in county schools.
This time last week few people had even heard about RAAC, let alone what it stands for. But since the weekend, we've heard of little else as the latest crisis to engulf the government unfolds.
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The government has finally released a full list of schools across the country that have dangerous crumbling concrete - and you can use our interactive map tool to search your postcode and see affected sites near you.
An education minister has said that the government's response to the crumbling concrete crisis in schools has been 'world leading', despite ordering the full or partial closure of more than 100 schools in England just before the start of term.
The Education Secretary was caught on camera voicing her frustrations over coverage surrounding the potentially dangerous concrete in many British schools.
Work has begun on several Greater Manchester schools affected by dangerous crumbly concrete as 'mitigating measures' are put in place.
An SNP Cabinet Secretary has said there is no “immediate risk to safety” in schools over the collapsing concrete threat.
Two further schools in Bolton are impacted by the crisis over potentially dangerous crumbling concrete, it has emerged.
Labour says it will push a vote to force ministers to release a list of all schools at risk of collapse due to dangerous crumbling concrete.
Dangerous crumbling concrete has been found at an east Manchester school. It is hoped most of All Saints C of E primary in Newton Heath will remain open, with only the assembly hall thought to be affected.
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Dangerous crumbling concrete which the government says could require immediate building closures has been confirmed in Greater Manchester schools.
More schools could be told they need to close because they are built with concrete that could suddenly collapse, the schools minister has admitted. But Nick Gibb insisted that the Government will pay for the costs of temporary classrooms after official guidance suggested schools will have to cover the emergency measures.