Around one hundred schools in England are still scrambling to make alternative arrangements following a government warning that some buildings may be unsafe and even pose a risk to life. It announcement came just days before the start of the autumn term for many. But what is the risk? And how easily is the issue solved?
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00:00 The warnings apply to any buildings that have a certain type of concrete, reinforced autoclaved
00:05 aerated concrete or RAAC. It's a lightweight building material that was used in roofing,
00:10 walls and floors from the 50s up until the 90s. It was cheaper and quicker to use than
00:15 standard concrete but is less durable, only lasting around 30 years. The Health and Safety
00:20 Executive says that RAAC is now beyond its lifespan and may collapse with little or no
00:25 notice. So what is being done to reduce the risk posed? The potential issues with the
00:30 building material were first identified back in the 60s but the government has known since
00:34 the mid 90s that some public sector buildings contain potentially compromised RAAC. They've
00:40 been monitoring the condition of said buildings since 2018. Schools Minister Nick Gibb said
00:45 experts on the material had advised building was still safe to use up until an RAAC beam
00:51 that had previously been considered low risk collapsed, he said. This led to the urgent
00:56 warning to be issued to schools, closing some at very short notice.