‘Crumbly concrete’ at centre of school shutdown crisis is now found in Parliament
- RAAC discovered in one area of the Palace, parliamentary spokesman confirms
The ‘crumbly concrete’ at the centre of the school shutdown crisis has now been found in Parliament.
A parliamentary spokesman has confirmed the presence of RAAC in the Houses of Parliament.
‘As part of routine ongoing investigations, RAAC was identified in one area of the Palace,’ he said.
‘Structural engineers have confirmed there is no immediate risk. Where RAAC is found, mitigations will be put in place as necessary.’
However, the crumbly concrete does not pose any ‘immediate risk’, the spokesman added.
RAAC has now been discovered in the Houses of Parliament, a parliamentary spokesman has confirmed, although it does not pose any ‘immediate risk’
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has come under scrutiny for the way she has handled the crisis and last week pushed the blame onto schools
It comes as ministers remain under pressure over the issue, with concerns about the state of school buildings sparking anxiety about the presence of the aerated concrete in other publicly-owned buildings and infrastructure.
READ HERE: Thousands more schools at risk from ‘crumbly concrete’ with checks yet to be carried out, report says, as fears grow children could return to lockdown learning for MONTHS
The scandal caused fury from parents after more than 100 schools were ordered to fully or partially shut buildings before the new academic year due to safety concerns.
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan recently came under intense scrutiny for the way she has handled the crisis which caused chaos in schools up and down the country.
Last week she sparked fury from schools as she blamed them for failing to ‘get off their backsides’.
Ms Keegan dramatically escalated the tit-for-tat with teachers as she vented frustration at delays in getting information about RAAC in buildings.
After delivering an extraordinary foul-mouthed rant about not getting credit for doing a ‘f***ing good job’ responding to the chaos, Ms Keegan complained that 5 per cent of schools had still not responded to a questionnaire sent out by her department in March 2022.
And only on Friday Heathrow and Gatwick airports both confirmed RAAC had been found.
Concrete that has caused chaos across the UK in recent days has now been found at Heathrow (file photo) and Gatwick
Heathrow (pictured) and Gatwick airports handle nearly 100million passengers a year between them
RAAC was found first at Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 3 (pictured) last year, while Gatwick has been aware of the presence of RAAC for some time
The schools that had to close or partially close due to the presence of the crumbly concrete as children returned from the summer holidays
Bosses at the airports have said they were aware of the presence of RAAC before the crisis over the use of the material in school buildings.
READ MORE: Gillian Keegan blames schools for concrete chaos saying heads must ‘get off your backsides’
RAAC was found first at Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 3 last year.
Safety precautions have already been put in place on a temporarily basis as airport bosses now decide on a permanent solution to the issue.
The scandal over RAAC being used in schools led to Heathrow chiefs to review their plans for the building material.
The airport believes that their plans are still suitable but will monitor their buildings and mitigate any issues discovered at the airport.
A Heathrow spokesperson said: ‘Industry has been aware and acting on the remedial steps that should be taken in buildings that contain this material. We, like many others, have been assessing our estate and will continue to mitigate the risk where this material is found.
‘Passenger and colleague safety will always be our first priority and we will continue to update stakeholders across the sector as our plans for permanent solutions progress.’
Gatwick Airport has been aware of the presence of RAAC for some time.
The airport regularly inspects any RAAC installations and they last inspected the material in their buildings in June this year.
Structural engineers have said the inspections have not raised any causes for concern and that there is no risk to anyone at the airport.
Gatwick are also committed to having independent engineers carry out regular checks.
Concerns about the safety of the parliamentary estate are long-standing, amid repeated delays to plans to restore and refurbishment the famous site.
There have been repeated warnings in recent years about the threat of fire and asbestos across the estate.
The restoration project is estimated to cost several billion pounds.
WHAT IS RAAC CONCRETE?
RAAC refers to a lightweight form of concrete which was used in the construction of schools, colleges and other buildings from the 1950s until the mid-1990s.
RAAC – which stands for reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete – can be found in any educational building that was either built or modified within this time period.
The Standing Committee on Structural Safety has said the material is ‘very different from traditional concrete and, because of how it was made, much weaker’.
The Institution of Structural Engineers says RAAC should be replaced only if deemed to be in a poor condition and high risk, otherwise it can be managed in place.
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