Cabinet statement re RAAC concrete and schools

Councillor Penny Carpenter, cabinet member for children's services, has made the following statement at cabinet today, about RAAC concrete and schools:

• I thought it was important to make a statement today, as I recognise and share the concerns of parents and teachers about the issue of RAAC concrete in schools
• We were made aware of this issue in 2018 and proactively worked with all of the county council's maintained schools to identify if RAAC was present and if there were any problems. Structural engineers from NPS carried out surveys of 83 buildings and found no concerns
• As you would expect, we are keeping up to date with the changes and updates in DFE guidance and other information on RAAC as it comes through, in case any additional assessment is required to ensure the health and safety of pupils
• As you know, most schools are academies, which are independent of the council and they are responsible for their own buildings. We have contacted academies three times since 2018 to flag the potential issues with RAAC and reminded them to complete the Department for Education's survey in June this year
• On Friday (1 September), we were contacted by the Thomas Bullock academy school in Shipdham, where RAAC was found in the school hall. The start of term has been delayed by a day to enable checks to take place
• We are awaiting further results from a number of other academy schools and the schools will inform parents and staff if any issues are found. We are, as always, ready to assist
• I would encourage parents to speak to their schools if they have any concerns. I look forward to receiving further details about how the Government intends to deal with the issue of RAAC in schools

You can watch Councillor Penny Carpenter giving her statement via YouTube.