Majority of schools hit by Raac scandal have still not had concrete removed

More than a year since the Raac scandal emerged, nearly 90 per cent of schools receiving government support to remove dangerous concrete have not had work carried out, The Independent can reveal.

- ARCHIE MITCHELL

Labour education minister Stephen Morgan has also admitted that it could take up to five years to fix the nationwide problem, which has left thousands of pupils being taught in temporary classrooms.

Latest figures show at least 232 schools are to get help through government money after reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) was found amid the national scandal last autumn.

The crumbling concrete, described as “80 per cent air” and “like an Aero bar”, was the cause of three roofs caving in at UK schools in 2023, with the Conservative government at the time promising funding to remove the material.

However, Mr Morgan said only 30 schools had so far had Raac removed through government grants.

The 232 schools include 110 receiving grant funding to take out the concrete, while 122 are having one or more impacted buildings rebuilt or refurbished under the government’s school rebuilding programme.

But the rebuilding programme could also take three to five years to complete, said Mr Morgan in response to a parliamentary question submitted by the Liberal Democrats.

It means that nearly nine in ten schools are waiting to have Raac removed through government funding.