An estimated 700,000 pupils are currently receiving education in schools across England that are desperately in need of significant repairs or refurbishment.
The escalating backlog of schools requiring urgent attention was underscored in the findings of a critical parliamentary inquiry into the state of the school estate. Members of the Public Accounts Committee, who serve as watchdogs for government spending, expressed concerns that the School Rebuilding Programme has become overly preoccupied with issues related to reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
According to the committee, many of the 100 schools yet to be selected for the programme are likely to be chosen based on serious RAAC issues. Consequently, other deteriorating schools are being pushed to the back of the line for funding.
Approximately 700,000 students attend the 1,200 schools under consideration for the SRP. The committee also flagged the Department for Education’s sluggish progress in compiling a comprehensive overview of asbestos presence in the school estate.
The report reveals that as of July 2023, the DfE had incomplete information on asbestos conditions in just over 4% of schools. While this marks an improvement from 7% in May 2022, it still accounts for nearly 1,000 schools. Complicating matters, both RAAC and asbestos can coexist in the same building, creating challenges for addressing these issues.
The report also highlighted that since 2011, an average of 11 teachers or former teachers have succumbed to asbestos-related conditions each year, according to data from the Health and Safety Executive.
The committee is urging the Government to devise a comprehensive package of support and best practices aimed at mitigating the adverse impact on students and teachers in schools that are in poor condition but cannot be immediately addressed.
Dame Meg Hillier MP, chair of the committee, said: “The School Rebuilding Programme was already struggling to stay on track, and DfE lacked a mechanism to direct funding to regions which need it most.
“It risks being blown further off course by concerns over RAAC, and many schools in dire need of help will not receive it as a result.
“The images of classroom ceilings collapsed onto empty school desks released in recent months are not just searing indictments of a deteriorating school estate.
“They are chilling reminders of absolute catastrophe averted through sheer luck.
“Given the poor condition of so many of these buildings, the Government’s prime challenge now is to keep the safety of children and staff absolutely paramount.”
