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More than 150 schools in England have been identified as having a type of potentially dangerous concrete – with many now closing buildings or classrooms to make them safe.
The government has not yet published a list of which schools are affected – but BBC News is trying to find out through schools themselves. The list is being constantly updated and you can tell us about your school below.
Do you know of a school that is affected? Share information in confidence by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk
Which schools have closed buildings?
The government is not publishing a list, as it says it wants parents to hear from headteachers and principals about closures first.
So far, BBC News has learned the following schools are affected:
Abbey Lane Primary School, Sheffield, South Yorkshire – work started in July to replace the RAAC in the roof over the kitchen, and alternative meal arrangements are now being made for pupils
The Billericay School, Billericay, Essex – some parts of the school are shut and some pupils will learn remotely – more from Essex here, where 50 schools are fitted with the concrete
Canon Slade School, Bolton, Greater Manchester – some areas are closed for safety reasons, local press reports say
Carmel College and Sixth Form, Darlington, County Durham – kitchen and library are closed but the school will remain open
Clacton County High School, Clacton, Essex – start of term is delayed with some remote learning
Cockermouth School, Cockermouth, Cumbria – pupils will return to school a day later because of RAAC found in four corridors, the library and sports hall
Corpus Christi Catholic Primary School, Brixton, London – a statement from 18 August says juniors are to be relocated to a neighbouring school
Cranbourne College, Basingstoke, Hampshire – one area has been closed since the start of the year, temporary works are in another part but the school remains open
Crossflatts Primary School, Bradford, West Yorkshire – the school is partially closed with pupils moved to different areas of the building. Temporary buildings are in place
Donnington Wood Infants School, Donnington, Telford, Shropshire – has had extra temporary ceilings added and will remain open
East Bergholt High School, Colchester, Essex – the school is considering whether to delay reopening or partially close
Eldwick Primary School, Bradford, West Yorkshire – Bradford Council has also confirmed some buildings are closed
Ferryhill School, a secondary in County Durham – the start of the new school year will be delayed. New starters would start a week late with the rest being taught online, it said. One parent said his Year 7 daughter was apprehensive about starting school and this put them in a “difficult position”
The Gilberd School, Colchester, Essex – the school will not reopen until 11 September for students in Year 8-11, with Year 7 pupils returning a day later
Hadleigh High School, Hadleigh, Suffolk – considering a delay of the new term
Hatfield Peverel Junior School, Chelmsford, Essex – the school is closed until at least mid-September. Temporary classrooms are needed
Hockley Primary School, Hockley, Essex – closed since 11 June, some year groups are being sent to other schools
Holy Trinity Catholic Academy, Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire – issues have been identified on site but the school will open as planned
Honywood School, Colchester, Essex – 22 classrooms must be closed with immediate effect, with some pupils to do online learning and a rota system for year groups in school
Jerounds Primary School in Harlow, Essex – RAAC was detected in the school’s kitchen but is being strengthened by a steel structure and the school will stay open
Katherines Primary Academy, Harlow, Essex – the main building is closed
Kingsdown School, Southend-on-Sea, Essex – the special school for children aged from three to 14 years old was told on Thursday to close its main building
Mayflower Primary School, Leicester, Leicestershire – also found out it was affected before the summer holidays
Our Lady’s Catholic High School, Preston, Lancashire – closed on Monday and Tuesday
Outwoods Primary School, Atherstone, North Warwickshire – work began earlier this year to install support as a precaution, but the school will remain open
Parks Primary, Leicester, Leicestershire – back in May, the school had to relocate several classes and borrow rooms from other institutions after the discovery of RAAC
Ramsey Academy, Halstead, Essex – four classrooms have been vacated and are out of use until safety measures are in place
Ravens Academy, Clacton-On-Sea, Essex – the school will be closed for two days next week, on 5 and 6 September
St Clere’s School, Stanford-le-Hope, Essex – parts of the school need to close, with some pupils to learn from home
St Gregory’s Catholic Science College, Harrow, London – work is being done to prop up the concrete, but the school is expected to open as planned
St Leonard’s School, Durham, County Durham – the school will not be able to open as planned
St Teresa’s Catholic Primary School, Darlington, County Durham – closed until 11 September
St Thomas More Catholic Comprehensive, Eltham, London – open but parts of the hall, gym, canteen, drama studio, alps and girls’ and boys’ toilets are closed, and the school needs to open mobile toilet blocks
White Hall Academy primary, Clacton, Essex – the school is carrying out surveys and parents were told on Friday there will be three non-teaching days
Willowbrook Mead Primary Academy, Leicester, Leicestershire – parents were told in a letter from the school, seen by the BBC, about complex arrangements to send children from different year groups to two different schools, and give older children home schooling
Winter Gardens Academy, Canvey Island, Essex – parts of the school are to be vacated with immediate effect
Wood Green Academy, Wednesbury, West Midlands – some classrooms will be closed until October
Woodville Primary School, South Woodham Ferrers, Chelmsford, Essex – school closed until 11 September
Wyburns Primary School, Rayleigh, Essex – closed for possibly up to two weeks
How many schools are affected in total?
The Department for Education (DfE) said 156 school buildings were identified as having this type of concrete, RAAC (find out more about the concrete here). Of them, 52 were at risk of sudden collapse and action was taken immediately to make them safe, for example by propping up the concrete.
The other 104 are currently scrambling to put safety measures in place to stay open.
Schools with RAAC only have to close or partially close if they do not have safety measures in place, and cannot make alternative arrangements – such as converting other parts of the building into temporary classrooms or moving children to another site.
We’re not sure how many schools are having to close, but think as many as 24 of them may have to.
But more schools may be affected by RAAC. Back in June, a report by the National Audit Office assessed that 572 schools had been identified where RAAC might be present. Engineers at schools across the country have been carrying out surveys to work out where the problems are.
Where are schools being checked over?
Engineers have been carrying out surveys across England to work out where the problems are. While this work affects most councils, some are also announcing how many of their schools are being surveyed:
Kingston – the council says 13 community and foundation schools and 45 other council buildings have been identified and they have ordered further checks
Hertfordshire – several school buildings in the county are to be surveyed. No school in the county needs to close currently. The council previously identified and fixed three schools with RAAC last year
Lancashire – after an initial survey of all schools, 17 schools are going to have detailed surveys done due to their age as a precautionary measure, the council says
Nottinghamshire – the council says Carnarvon Primary School, Bingham, Nottingham needs further checks, although no immediate issues have been identified
Other UK nations
Northern Ireland – schools in Northern Ireland are being checked for collapse-prone concrete as a matter of urgency
Scotland – at least 12 schools have been identified with RAAC. There are five in West Lothian, two in the Highlands, two in Edinburgh and one each in Perth and Kinross, Moray and East Lothian. No school has been completely closed. Figures obtained by the Scottish Liberal Democrats in May found at least 37 schools in Scotland have buildings that contain RAAC
Wales – schools and colleges are being surveyed for RAAC but no institutions have reported having the material
Do you know of a school that is affected? Share information in confidence by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
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