Tue. Nov 5th, 2024
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WORRIED parents are anxiously waiting to hear if their children’s school is being forced to close over concrete warnings.

It was revealed yesterday that 150 schools may be forced into lockdown after being told to shut down buildings and classrooms at risk of collapse.

Parents are anxiously waiting to hear if their children's school is one of the 150 impacted by crumbling concrete1

Parents are anxiously waiting to hear if their children’s school is one of the 150 impacted by crumbling concreteCredit: Alamy

Families were expected to be told if their youngsters would be affected in the hours that followed.

Here’s how to find out if your loved ones are impacted – and a list of the schools said to have been forced to shut to date.

At this stage the government is refusing to publish a list of potentially crumbling schools seeing ministers urged to immediately reveal the full list.

But parents and schools have been speaking out, with most families expected to have heard from their youngsters’ schools if they were going to be affected by now.

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BBC reported two Bradford schools –  Eldwick Primary School and Crossflatts Primary School – had been told to close off certain buildings.

Bradford Council said at least eight teaching spaces across both sites had been closed.

The Star said Sheffield‘s Abbey Lane Primary is likely to be told to immediately shut as it is known to have been built using the problem material.

Ferryhill School in County Durham is also said to be on the list.

The Independent said parents got an email saying the secondary school will have a delayed start to new academic year, with classes being shifted online.

Basildon, Canvey, Southend Echo reported angry parents got a letter from Hockley Primary School, in Essex, saying it would not reopen.

BBC reported Mistley Norman Church of England primary had been taught in classrooms at another school since April as a result of RAAC.

Elsewhere in Essex, Kingsdown School was told it would have to close as a result.


It comes as…


The Telegraph reported Singlewell Primary School in Kent is another that had been trying to make the school safe throughout the last month.

Leicestershire‘s Willowbrook Mead Primary Academy is also impacted, BBC said.

Metro reported Eldwick Primary School near Leeds, and London‘s Corpus Christi Catholic School had been told to shut.

It comes as officials revealed the schools were made up of dodgy concrete – just days before the new school term starts.

Unions have now warned this could be just the “the tip of the iceberg”.

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They said hundreds more schools built with “crumbly” reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) expected to be told that they must shut classrooms and buildings.

Simon Allford, president of the Royal Institute of British Architects, said it was “a huge concern 700,000 pupils are being taught in buildings that require major rebuilding or refurbishment”.

What is RAAC and what is the problem with it?

What is RAAC?

RAAC is a lightweight type of concrete and is normally used in the roof, the floor, cladding and wall construction.

It was used in the UK since the mid-1950s but stopped being used in the 80s, according to the Local Government Association.

It’s believed many schools and officers were built with RAAC concrete.

The material has also been found in other types of buildings since – not all of which are in the public sector.

What is wrong with RAAC?

In some cases, inspections found some RAAC planks had defects that when couple with severe weather, caused them to creep.

The condition of some planks then deteriorated causing them to collapse.

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