Three primaries have closed in the past 10 days following the discovery of “crumbly” reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) as news emerged that a school building with the same problem has been shut for months.
The Department for Education told the four schools, which are spread across Essex, Tyne and Wear and Newcastle, to shut after finding RAAC in their ceilings.
The potentially dangerous material has been dubbed “Aero-like” by structural engineers amid fears it is “now life-expired and liable to collapse”.
Government officials have been asking responsible bodies – trusts and councils – to complete surveys on the presence of RAAC on their sites since last March.
