Agenda item

To enable Non Cabinet Members to raise an issue of relevance to Brent for debate on which notice has been provided in accordance with Standing Order 34 and to receive reports from Cabinet members, as required, on any issues previously raised.

 

Members are asked to note that the subject identified for debate at this meeting is as follows:

 

Provision of support to deal with cases of RAAC Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete in Brent Schools

 

Please note: The motion submitted as the basis for this debate has been attached.

 

(Agenda republished on 10 September 2023 to include a Labour Group amendment on the original motion submitted as the basis for the Non-Cabinet Member debate)

Following the approval of an amendment moved by the Labour Group in relation to the original motion submitted, the following motion (as amended) was AGREED as the outcome of the non-cabinet member debate:

 

“Provision of support to deal with cases of RAAC (Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete) in Brent Schools

 

This Council notes:

 

Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) is a lightweight form of concrete pioneered in Sweden whose use swept across Europe particularly in schools, colleges, and other building construction from the 1950’s until the mid-1990s.  Used in flat roofing, floors, and walls it offered a cheaper alternative to standard concrete, but its short lifespan means its use in permanent buildings has caused problems. The Secretary of State for Education has clarified, out of 22,500 schools in England, 156 have been confirmed to have RAAC and 52 of these have already got mitigations in place and are dealing with repairs.

 

To date, it has been identified that onlyone Brent school, although not maintained by the Council, has RAAC.  St. Gregory’s Catholic Science College discovered it had RAAC in its Maths block in November 2022. Safety measures were introduced, and work was completed by Tuesday 12^th September.  The Council was informed by the school’s CEO/Headteacher in January 2023 of the discovery of RAAC.  There is no current financial impact to the Council as the school affected is operated by an academy trust, therefore the local authority is not the responsible body.

 

Upon notification in January 2023, DfE have supported the school in arranging surveys and discussing the management of RAAC. Since the summer, a dedicated case officer has been assigned to the school from the DfE to manage the next steps of removing RAAC from the school with all costs to be reimbursed by the DfE as it rightfully should.

 

When Brent residents apply for rear building extensions, building control officers demand high quality materials be used. If this RAAC was known to have a recommended 30-year lifespan there must be question as to why it was approved in long term school and civic developments and what reviews were put in place by Building Control to undertake regular checks on its safety?

 

Parents, teachers and pupils across the country have been rightly concerned aboutthe news of RAAC and this has been reflected in how it has been reported.  The Secretary of State for Education Gillian Keegan MP is the tenth Conservative Secretary of State for Education since 2010 and showed no sympathy for parents’ concerns across the UK in her highly unprofessional behaviour when she was being interviewed by ITV news.

 

As a result, this Council recognises:

 

·             That the Conservative Government in the 1980s colluded in neglecting capital and infrastructure investment despite insatiable public demand for increased revenue spending on vital public services. This has been worsened by the effects of Austerity which decimated the country’s public services and de-funded buildings provided for our nation’s schoolchildren. People a century ago were truly building schools for the future; today’s squabbles are much more about ‘Patching Schools for the Present’. The uncomfortable truth is that this really, if anything, has been a pass-the-parcel problem made worse by the current Conservative Government, putting at risk school children and staff.

 

·             It was a Labour Government that launched the Building Schools for the Future Programme, which was the biggest school building programme since the Victorian times allocating £55billion to rebuild every secondary school in the country. In the first months of the Conservative-led Coalition Government in 2010, then Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove scrapped the scheme and offered no replacement. Gove has later called the cancellation of this programme his biggest mistake in office.

 

·             Covid has taught us so many things and lead us to deal with issues that we thought would never be achieved. We will also deal with this and learn the valuable lesson of investing in our public services to ensure good practice and safety for all of our residents.

 

·             Whilst global events continue, there is also a need to recognise that the safety of our children comes first. The issue of RAAC has been missed for over 30 years.  In 2002 the Labour government first became aware of the deterioration and risks of RAAC via a BRE (Building Research Establishment) report.  In 2018 Conservative Minister Damian Hinds ordered an urgent and comprehensive review of RAAC in all schools. It is because of these inspections that we know the extent of the current risks. Senior officials at the Department of Education told the treasury while Rishi Sunak was Chancellor at the time that there was a need to rebuild 300 to 400 schools a year in England, Sunak only allowed funding for 100 schools which was then halved to 50.

 

This Council therefore resolves:

 

·             To request the Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Schools writes to the Secretary of State for Education to call for urgent additional funding to be secured for buildings affected by RAAC in Brent and across the UK, and for her to outline what measures the Government is doing to ensure the safety of our schoolchildren.

 

·             To pledge to support in any way we can St Gregory’s Catholic Science College, which is the only Brent school currently affected with RAAC while also noting that there are limitations to how we as a Council can assist as the school is operated by an Academy and we pledge to support, guide and advise any schools which may become known in future.

 

·             To recognise that school requests for planning permission and other compliance issues from the council should be dealt with expeditiously while following the planning and safety legislation that underpins all planning decisions.

 

·             To work cross party to expedite planning permissions where required for the temporary classrooms and Portacabins schools may require and should they go down this route, to house the classrooms on site or alternatively assist in finding suitable accommodation across the borough.  For example, when schools ask for planning permission there should be no complacency in recognising any defects and dealing with them quickly.

 

·             To communicate with the affected schools should they need help with contractors for remedial works.

 

·             In the case of schools which are affected by RAAC but are not the council’s responsibility, if the schools are short of funds to remedy the defects the Council to call on the Government to provide the necessary funding and not rely on already stretched Local Government budgets.

 

·             To continue closely monitoring through building control functions all schools for cases of unsafe materials.”

 

Eligible for Call-In: No

In accordance with Standing Order 34, the Mayor advised that the next item on the agenda was the non-cabinet member debate, with the subject chosen for consideration being the provision of support regarding cases of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in Brent Schools.

 

Members were advised that the motion submitted as the basis for the debate had been circulated with the agenda and that the time available for the debate was 25 minutes.

 

Prior to the introduction of the motion submitted for debate, Councillor Kansagra raised a Point of Order regarding the limited notice provided of the subsequent amendment to the original motion which had submitted by the Labour Group.  As a result, he advised he would be seeking to raise the process and timing for the submission of amendments to motions at the next Constitutional Working Group in an effort to ensure sufficient time was provided for amendments to be properly considered in advance of the relevant meeting.

 

Having noted the comments highlighted by Councillor Kansagra, the Mayor then invited Councillor Mistry to introduce the motion which had been submitted as the basis for the Non-Cabinet Member debate.  As context for the debate, Councillor Mistry outlined the background to the use of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in building construction and safety concerns relating to its use in the construction of school buildings.  As a result of an inspection programme initiated by the Department for Education (DfE), the Secretary of State for Education had recently confirmed a total of 156 schools across England as having identified RAAC within their buildings of which 52 now had mitigations in place.  In terms of Brent, one school had initially been identified within the list (St Gregory’s Catholic Science College School) with another having subsequently been identified at Kingsbury High School but she was pleased to note that work was now underway to complete repairs following the introduction of safety measures and liaison with the Council.  In recognising that there would be no financial impact on the Council in terms of St Gregory’s Catholic Science College, as the school operated as an Academy, Councillor Mistry advised that the motion was seeking to ensure the necessary support was in place for any further schools identified as being affected moving forward, recognising the issue as one which fell under the responsibility of successive Governments since the 1980s.

 

In addressing the amendment submitted to the motion by the Labour Group, Councillor Mistry expressed disappointment at the extent of the changes proposed as it was hoped that members from all groups on the Council would be seeking the same outcome in terms of the support and financial assistance being sought from the DfE to mitigate and ensure the necessary repairs could be undertaken to ensure the safety of all sites affected.  Whilst recognising the support provided for St Gregory’s Catholic Science College School, Councillor Mistry reiterated the need to recognise this as a failure of successive governments and hoped that on this basis all members would support the original motion in seeking to pledge support for those schools currently affected by RAAC or which may be identified in future and to ensure any mitigations required as a result were fully funded at no cost to the schools and with the use of construction materials in schools continuing to be closely monitored to prevent any similar safety concerns in future.

 

The Mayor thanked Councillor Mistry for introducing the motion and then drew member’s attention to an amendment submitted by Councillor Grahl on behalf of the Labour Group, which had been circulated in advance of the meeting.

 

In moving the amendment Councillor Grahl began by highlighting a need to recognise what she felt was the incompetence of the current and previous Conservative Governments in the neglect of capital and infrastructure investment for vital public services, including schools compounded by the impact of austerity and their current education policy.  In recognising that RAAC had been a long standing issue she highlighted and commended the steps taken by the previous Labour Government in launching the Building Schools for the Future programme which had been designed to rebuild/refurbish all secondary schools in the UK and expressed concern at the impact which the subsequent scrapping of the scheme by the coalition Government in 2010 was now having in terms of the school estate and on the reduction in level of funding provided and programme delivered for the rebuilding of schools.  In summarising the cumulative impact of the Conservative Government’s actions, Councillor Grahl felt this had led to a funding and accountability crisis in the oversight of educational provision, with buildings at risk of collapse, difficulties in relation to the funding of school budgets, teacher recruitment and a lack of SEND provision that was ultimately failing children and schools.  As a result, Councillor Grahl advised the Labour Group would be seeking to oppose the original motion in favour of the amendment moved, as set out below, which whilst focussed on the support required by schools had also been designed to reflect the concerns identified in relation to the impact of the Conservative Governments approach towards austerity and the funding of vital public services such as schools.  As a result, the amendment moved as was follows:

 

To add the wording underlined and delete the wording indicated:

 

“Provision of support to deal with cases of RAAC (Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete) in Brent Schools

 

This Council notes:

 

Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) is a lightweight form of concrete pioneered in Sweden whose use swept across Europe particularly in schools, colleges, and other building construction from the 1950’s until the mid-1990s.  Used in flat roofing, floors, and walls it offered a cheaper alternative to standard concrete, but its short lifespan means its use in permanent buildings has caused problems. The Secretary of State for Education has clarified, out of 22,500 schools in England, 156 have been confirmed to have RAAC and 52 of these have already got mitigations in place and are dealing with repairs.

 

To date, it has been identified that only one Brent school, although not maintainedby the Council, has RAAC.  St. Gregory’s Catholic Science College discovered it had RAAC in its Maths block in November 2022. Safety measures were introduced, and work is under way which was completed by Tuesday 12^th September should be completed by Monday 11^th September. The Council was informed by the school’s CEO/Headteacher in January 2023 of the discovery of RAAC.  There is no current financial impact to the Council as the school affected is operated by an academy trust not a community school, therefore the local authority is not the responsible body.

 

Upon notification in January 2023, DfE have supported the school in arranging surveys and discussing the management of RAAC. Since the summer, a dedicated case officer has been assigned to the school from the DfE to manage the next steps of removing RAAC from the school with all costs to be reimbursed by the DfE as it rightfully should.

 

When Brent residents apply for rear building extensions, building control officers demand high quality materials be used. If this RAAC was known to have a recommended 30-year lifespan there must be question as to why it was approved in long term school and civic developments and what reviews were put in place by Building Control to undertake regular checks on its safety?

 

Let’s also not get carried away with the way Parents, teachers and pupils across the country have been rightly concerned about the news of RAAC and this has been reflected in how it has been reported.  We all remember Gordon Brown’s comments about a Rochdale constituent calling her a “bigoted woman” and who later went on to deliver a personal grovelling apology. Never has it been so evident that the journalists of this country lead and dictate the news agenda, something the Secretary of State for Education Gillian Keegan MP should have learnt from is the tenth Conservative Secretary of State for Education since 2010 and showed no sympathy for parents’ concerns across the UK in her highly unprofessional behaviour when she was being interviewed by ITV news.

 

As a result, this Council recognises:

 

·             That the Conservative successive Governments of different political persuasions since in the 1980s have all colluded in neglecting capital and infrastructure investment to service despite insatiable public demand for increased revenue spending on vital public services. This has been worsened by the effects of Austerity which decimated the country’s public services and de-funded buildings provided for our nation’s schoolchildren. People a century ago were truly building schools for the future; today’s squabbles are much more about ‘Patching Schools for the Present’. The uncomfortable truth is that this really, if anything, has been a pass-the-parcel problem by successive made worse by the current Conservative governments, putting at risk school children and staff.

 

·             That whilst It was a Labour Government that launched may cite the Building Schools for the Future Programme, which was the biggest school building programme since the Victorian times allocating £55billion to rebuild every secondary school in the country. In the first months of the Conservative-led Coalition Government in 2010, then Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove scrapped the scheme and offered no replacement. Gove has later called the cancellation of this programme his biggest mistake in office. there was criticism of the scheme in a National Audit Office (NAO) report and a review of the scheme - commissioned by the government, which found the allocation of funding for school buildings had been "complex, time-consuming, expensive and opaque".

 

·             Covid has taught us so many things and lead us to deal with issues that we thought would never be achieved. We will also deal with this. and learn the valuable lesson of investing in our public services to ensure good practice and safety for all of our residents.

 

·             Whilst global events continue, there is also a need to recognise that the safety of our children comes first. The issue of RAAC has been missed by successive governments of all colours, including the coalition, for over 30 years. In 2002 the Labour government first became aware of the deterioration and risks of RAAC via a BRE (Building Research Establishment) report. In 2018 Conservative Minister Damian Hinds ordered an urgent and comprehensive review of RAAC in all schools. It is because of these inspections that we know the extent of the current risks. Senior officials at the Department of Education told the treasury while Rishi Sunak was Chancellor at the time that there was a need to rebuild 300 to 400 schools a year in England, Sunak only allowed funding for 100 schools which was then halved to 50.

 

This Council therefore resolves:

 

·             To request the Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Schools writes to the Secretary of State for Education to call for urgent additional funding to be secured for buildings affected by RAAC in Brent and across the UK, and for her to outline what measures the Government is doing to ensure the safety of our schoolchildren.

 

·             To pledge to support, in any way we can guide and advise St Gregory’s Catholic Science College, which is the only Brent schools currently affected with RAAC while also noting that there are limitations to how we as a Council can assist as the school is operated by an Academy and we pledge to support, guide and advise any schools which may become known in future.

 

·             To recognise that school requests for planning permission and other compliance issues from the council should be dealt with expeditiously.  while following the planning and safety legislation that underpins all planning decisions.

 

·             To work cross party to expedite planning permissions where required for the temporary classrooms and Portacabins schools may require and should they go down this route, to house the classrooms on site or alternatively assist in finding suitable accommodation across the borough.  For example, when schools ask for planning permission there should be no complacency in recognising any defects and dealing with them quickly.

 

·             To communicate with the affected schools should they need help with contractors for remedial works.

 

·             In the case of schools which are affected by RAAC but are not the council’s responsibility, if the schools are short of funds to remedy the defects the Council to call on the Government to provide the necessary funding and not rely on already stretched Local Government budgets. consider providing financial support recognising that the DfE has already committed to refund all costs associated with RAAC.”

 

·             To continue closely monitoring through building control functions all schools for cases of unsafe materials.

 

The Mayor thanked Councillor Grahl for moving the amendment on behalf of the Labour Group and then opened the debate for contributions from other members in relation to both the original motion and amendment.

 

Councillor Maurice in opening the debate and supporting the original motion moved by Councillor Mistry, highlighted what he felt was the importance in recognising that it had been successive Governments, including both Conservative and Labour, who had failed to recognise the issue and neglected to provide the necessary capital and infrastructure investment required over the years.  Whilst recognising the concerns highlighted, he also felt it important to note that to date only 156 schools out of 22,500 across England were confirmed to be affected by RAAC (with only two in Brent) and 52 of these already having mitigations in place.  The limited lifespan associated with RAAC had been known since its use in construction from the 1950’s through to 1990’s with initial risks first identified in 2002 and the Conservative Government in 2018 having started the comprehensive review process involving schools and having advised they would cover the cost for any repairs.  It was on this basis he advised he would be supporting the original motion rather than amendment moved by the Labour Group.

 

Speaking in support of the amendment, Councillor Donnelly-Jackson felt it was important to recognise the failings of the current Conservative Government in addressing the multiple warnings and safety concerns highlighted in relation to the use of RAAC, especially from 2020 onwards and queried why the extent of the problem in terms of school and the wider public sector infrastructure (including hospital buildings) had still not been clarified.  In highlighting the need to recognise austerity as a political ideology which had led to the neglecting and defunding of capital and infrastructure investment, Councillor Donnelly-Jackson felt the current and previous coalition Government had failed to recognise the need for ongoing investment in vital public services, which as a result had placed the safety of school children and other local residents at risk.

 

Councillor Ethapemi, again speaking in support of the amended motion, also expressed concern at what he felt to be the lack of crucial infrastructure investment by the Conservative Government to ensure that schools were able to provide the safe environments pupils needed to learn and grow.  Concern was also highlighted in relation to the timing of guidance and advice issued by the DfE on RAAC towards the end rather than at the start of the summer school holiday period in order to provide additional time to prepare and plan for the impact on individual schools and minimise the level of disruption and impact on young people. In emphasising that opportunities to resolve the issue had been missed, Councillor Ethapemi also attributed this issue to Government austerity and called for sufficient investment in public services.

 

Councillor Kennelly, also speaking in support of the Labour Group amendment, highlighted the mistake he felt had been made by Michael Gove as Secretary of State for Education in 2010 in cancelling the previous Labour Government’s Building Schools for the Future Programme and offering no alternative in relation to a school building programme, leading to the problems now being experienced.  As an alternative, he felt members could be assured of the investment that would be provided by a future Labour Government in the future of schools and ensuring prosperity for all.

 

In further support of the amendment, Councillor Rubin firstly took the opportunity to thank officers and school staff for their efforts in safeguarding children and expressed surprise that the Conservative Group had decided to highlight the issue of RAAC, given the failure of the Conservative Government to have addressed the issue and provide adequate infrastructure investment.  In response to the criticism of the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme outlined within the original motion which had been moved by the Conservative Group as the basis for the debate, Councillor Rubin outlined that BSF had been based on a costed programme of scheduled work with its subsequent cancellation by the Conservative led coalition Government and subsequent defunding of further infrastructure investment felt to have represented a short-term approach that had led to the problems now being experienced.  In concluding, Councillor Rubin also questioned the current model of school governance, highlighting that approx. 69% of schools impacted by RAAC had been identified as not under local authority control and once again was assured of the plans for any future Labour Government to invest in the future of schools and country as a whole.

 

As a final contribution Councillor Tatler also spoke to question the stance taken within the original motion regarding Building Schools for the Future, having highlighted her personal experience of the positive difference made by the programme during her teaching career.  Members were also reminded of the repeated attempts by the Labour Party to raise concerns in Parliament about the plans to address the problems associated with RAAC in school and other public sector buildings, which had been dismissed by the Conservative Government and she felt highlighted why they could not be trusted to protect public services.  As a result, Councillor Tatler advised she would also be supporting the amendment moved by the Labour Group.

 

As there were no further contributions, the Mayor then invited Councillor Grahl, as Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Schools, to summarise and close the debate.

 

In drawing the debate to a close, Councillor Grahl thanks members for their comments and reassured members that at this stage only one school in Brent had been significantly impacted by RAAC, with another school identifying a small amount of RAAC in a storage area which had now been sectioned off.  In outlining the measures in place to deal with the issues which had been identified, Councillor Grahl ended by thanking all schools and their staff across the borough for their ongoing support in response to the challenges identified and for the reasons outlined during the debate hoped members would support the amendment moved.

 

Having concluded discussions, the Mayor then moved to the vote on the motion moved as the basis for the Non-Cabinet Member debate starting with the amendment moved by the Labour Group. The amendment, as set out above, was then put to the vote and declared CARRIED.

 

The Mayor then moved on to put the substantive motion, as amended, to a vote which was declared CARRIED.

 

It was therefore RESOLVED to approve the following motion as the outcome of the non-cabinet member debate:

 

“Provision of support to deal with cases of RAAC (Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete) in Brent Schools

 

This Council notes:

 

Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) is a lightweight form of concrete pioneered in Sweden whose use swept across Europe particularly in schools, colleges, and other building construction from the 1950’s until the mid-1990s.  Used in flat roofing, floors, and walls it offered a cheaper alternative to standard concrete, but its short lifespan means its use in permanent buildings has caused problems. The Secretary of State for Education has clarified, out of 22,500 schools in England, 156 have been confirmed to have RAAC and 52 of these have already got mitigations in place and are dealing with repairs.

 

To date, it has been identified that onlyone Brent school, although not maintained by the Council, has RAAC.  St. Gregory’s Catholic Science College discovered it had RAAC in its Maths block in November 2022. Safety measures were introduced, and work was completed by Tuesday 12^th September.  The Council was informed by the school’s CEO/Headteacher in January 2023 of the discovery of RAAC.  There is no current financial impact to the Council as the school affected is operated by an academy trust, therefore the local authority is not the responsible body.

 

Upon notification in January 2023, DfE have supported the school in arranging surveys and discussing the management of RAAC. Since the summer, a dedicated case officer has been assigned to the school from the DfE to manage the next steps of removing RAAC from the school with all costs to be reimbursed by the DfE as it rightfully should.

 

When Brent residents apply for rear building extensions, building control officers demand high quality materials be used. If this RAAC was known to have a recommended 30-year lifespan there must be question as to why it was approved in long term school and civic developments and what reviews were put in place by Building Control to undertake regular checks on its safety?

 

Parents, teachers and pupils across the country have been rightly concerned aboutthe news of RAAC and this has been reflected in how it has been reported.  The Secretary of State for Education Gillian Keegan MP is the tenth Conservative Secretary of State for Education since 2010 and showed no sympathy for parents’ concerns across the UK in her highly unprofessional behaviour when she was being interviewed by ITV news.

 

As a result, this Council recognises:

 

·             That the Conservative Government in the 1980s colluded in neglecting capital and infrastructure investment despite insatiable public demand for increased revenue spending on vital public services. This has been worsened by the effects of Austerity which decimated the country’s public services and de-funded buildings provided for our nation’s schoolchildren. People a century ago were truly building schools for the future; today’s squabbles are much more about ‘Patching Schools for the Present’. The uncomfortable truth is that this really, if anything, has been a pass-the-parcel problem made worse by the current Conservative Government, putting at risk school children and staff.

 

·             It was a Labour Government that launched the Building Schools for the Future Programme, which was the biggest school building programme since the Victorian times allocating £55billion to rebuild every secondary school in the country. In the first months of the Conservative-led Coalition Government in 2010, then Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove scrapped the scheme and offered no replacement. Gove has later called the cancellation of this programme his biggest mistake in office.

 

·             Covid has taught us so many things and lead us to deal with issues that we thought would never be achieved. We will also deal with this and learn the valuable lesson of investing in our public services to ensure good practice and safety for all of our residents.

 

·             Whilst global events continue, there is also a need to recognise that the safety of our children comes first. The issue of RAAC has been missed for over 30 years.  In 2002 the Labour government first became aware of the deterioration and risks of RAAC via a BRE (Building Research Establishment) report.  In 2018 Conservative Minister Damian Hinds ordered an urgent and comprehensive review of RAAC in all schools. It is because of these inspections that we know the extent of the current risks. Senior officials at the Department of Education told the treasury while Rishi Sunak was Chancellor at the time that there was a need to rebuild 300 to 400 schools a year in England, Sunak only allowed funding for 100 schools which was then halved to 50.

 

This Council therefore resolves:

 

·             To request the Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Schools writes to the Secretary of State for Education to call for urgent additional funding to be secured for buildings affected by RAAC in Brent and across the UK, and for her to outline what measures the Government is doing to ensure the safety of our schoolchildren.

 

·             To pledge to support in any way we can St Gregory’s Catholic Science College, which is the only Brent school currently affected with RAAC while also noting that there are limitations to how we as a Council can assist as the school is operated by an Academy and we pledge to support, guide and advise any schools which may become known in future.

 

·             To recognise that school requests for planning permission and other compliance issues from the council should be dealt with expeditiously while following the planning and safety legislation that underpins all planning decisions.

 

·             To work cross party to expedite planning permissions where required for the temporary classrooms and Portacabins schools may require and should they go down this route, to house the classrooms on site or alternatively assist in finding suitable accommodation across the borough.  For example, when schools ask for planning permission there should be no complacency in recognising any defects and dealing with them quickly.

 

·             To communicate with the affected schools should they need help with contractors for remedial works.

 

·             In the case of schools which are affected by RAAC but are not the council’s responsibility, if the schools are short of funds to remedy the defects the Council to call on the Government to provide the necessary funding and not rely on already stretched Local Government budgets.

 

To continue closely monitoring through building control functions all schools for cases of unsafe materials.”