Dozens of Staffordshire schools still to be investigated for form of crumbly concrete, council says
Staffordshire County Council has confirmed it still has to investigate dozens of schools for a form of crumbly concrete which has sparked safety concerns nationwide.
On Friday, the local authority said it had not been advised by the Department for Education that any schools in Staffordshire are included on the government’s list of 104 schools nationally that face either closure or relying on temporary classrooms due to being built from the reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) which was popular in construction during the 1960s and 1970s.
However the authority has now stated it could be weeks before there’s a true picture of how many schools are affected.
Councillor Jonathan Price, the council’s cabinet member for education, said: “The safety of pupils and school staff is our top priority, and we have already carried out an initial assessment on the 126 local authority maintained schools in Staffordshire.
“Some schools require a further assessment, which is already under way and will be completed shortly.”
However, he explained the majority of schools in the county are academy-run and the county council is not responsible for these buildings – but has offered advice and support.
In total there are 404 schools in Staffordshire, with just 126 of these run by the council.
Councillor Price said: “Since being notified of the national concerns regarding RAAC we have completed a rapid desk top review of all our 126 maintained schools.
“We have 76 schools needing further investigation, and they will all be surveyed as quickly as possible in the coming weeks.”
The council said it is not currently naming the schools, and declined to give a breakdown of how many schools in each district require further examination.
Councillor Mick Fitzpatrick, leader of East Staffordshire Borough Council said he hadn’t heard of any particular concerns in East Staffordshire.
He said: “I imagine with all the publicity that’s coming out about this, and it is a very concerning issue for parents, but there’s no-one shouting from our local schools so I’m assuming they’re ok at the moment.
“A lot of our schools are academies, and they’re responsible outside of the county council for their building and maintenance programmes.
“I’m sure they’re keeping ahead of that – but I certainly haven’t heard any alarm bells ringing.”
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