Last minute closure sees hundreds of Kent pupils out of school due to RAAC concerns

KentOnline / KMTV

The announcement came from Kent County Council on Monday night, leaving little time for parents to find alternative arrangements.

Transcript

00:00 Well, Gabriel Morris is now live at one of those schools in Tunbridge Wells.

00:03 Yes, Abi, this is St James's Church of England Primary School.

00:09 We are in Tunbridge Wells.

00:11 Today was the first day back for pupils, but not 250.

00:16 Some eight classes were told not to come in today over concerns over the mitigation work done.

00:22 We'll get more on that in just a second.

00:25 Well, this is the primary school today.

00:27 And I was able to do something that the pupils weren't able to do.

00:31 I went in to the school today to have a look at the mitigation work.

00:35 You should be able to see some pictures up on the screen now.

00:39 Now, on the screen, you should be able to see some plywood.

00:43 Above that is the rack.

00:46 That's reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete.

00:50 That's been the talking point of the past weekend.

00:53 Now, that rack is safe because mitigation has been in place.

00:56 And we have found out this evening that it is all safe.

00:59 But rack has been of a concern in recent years.

01:03 Back in 2018, a slab of rack fell down onto a classroom.

01:10 Luckily, no one was injured because it was on a weekend.

01:15 But it has been a concern for some time.

01:17 And that's why we saw some 150 schools issued guidance from the Department of Education last week to shut their doors

01:22 just a couple of days before pupils returned to school.

01:26 Now, this type of concrete was used widely in buildings between the 1950s, 60s, 70s,

01:31 and somewhat into the 80s and even the 90s at primary schools.

01:35 It was cheap, lightweight and easy to build.

01:39 And it's believed that it might be in many more primary schools and secondary schools across the UK.

01:45 At the moment, we currently know there are at least seven schools with this type of rack concrete.

01:52 Well, I was speaking to a parent outside Fiscal Gates at pick-up time today.

01:57 Now, they said the letter to the students came out late last night.

02:01 That's because of guidance from Kent County Council.

02:04 It was the school sent it out at about seven o'clock last night.

02:09 But they did say they are relieved that they are now in the clear from rack.

02:13 So it is disappointing and scary for our children.

02:16 I'm thinking of the broader families in the UK who are just starting this rack journey now.

02:23 But obviously you're in a good position.

02:25 But what was the communication you had from the school last night?

02:28 Because they sent a letter out, didn't they?

02:29 We had a letter last night about seven o'clock.

02:31 It was clear. It was concise.

02:33 It gave the information they could do in an accurate way.

02:36 I cannot fault the school one bit.

02:38 Now, this has been the political debate, discussion and drama of the past week.

02:46 As I said earlier, about some 150 schools were contacted by the Department for Education

02:52 that they had rack and they needed to close immediately and find alternative accommodation.

02:56 Some pupils having to go to different schools altogether.

02:59 Now, as far as we're aware, and we don't know this for certain

03:02 because the Department for Education still haven't released a full list of school closures.

03:07 As far as we're aware, speaking to Kent County Council and Medway Council,

03:11 no schools in Kent are impacted by this list.

03:17 Now, yesterday was the first day back for Parliament after the summer recess.

03:23 And we heard from Gillian Hegan, the Education Secretary,

03:25 some fruity language in response to her actions on that.

03:29 And of course, from the school's minister, he said the response to this rack has been "wild leading".

03:35 Now, Labour have been talking on this and they've been very critical,

03:38 saying it's been "unforgivable",

03:40 making reference to the Conservative administration back in 2010

03:44 getting rid of the new school building process.

03:47 Now, last night in Westminster, there was a political debate.

03:51 Greg Clark, the local MP to this primary school, name-checked the headteacher here.

03:54 In July, I met with the Minister of State

03:57 when St James' Primary School in my constituency was found to have rack.

04:01 The headteacher, Mr Tutte, and his staff and governors have done a heroic job

04:07 in finding space for the children and having works during the summer to restore the classrooms.

04:13 Will the Minister of State meet with me straight after this statement

04:17 to confirm that they now pass muster so that the school can now reopen as planned?

04:24 Secretary of State?

04:26 Yes, I can confirm my right honourable friend is doing an MP meeting after this,

04:31 but he can meet after that.

04:33 Yes, they've done an excellent job and I'd like to thank all the people involved

04:36 in making sure they've taken the action they have.

04:39 But we will, by the end of today, work with the honourable gentleman

04:42 and to make sure we know how it will get finalized.

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