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The Latest Breaking News from DfE

UK government did not carry out detailed surveys before it bought free schools sites

Freedom of information requests show such was haste to open new schools unsuitable buildings were purchased without checks for asbestos or concrete

The Guardian - UK

Gillian Keegan U-turns on ‘naming and shaming’ schools that miss Raac survey deadline

Education secretary called on schools to “get off their backsides” and return the surveys

The Independent UK

Half of Education Department staff working in office as concrete crisis unfolded

Some 51% of DfE desks were occupied in the week more than 100 schools were told to close, Civil Service data for August indicated.

The Independent UK

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UK officials BLANK Scottish requests for 'new' Raac risk evidence

UK officials have repeatedly failed to explain to the Scottish Government why entire schools in England have closed, The National can reveal.

The National (Scotland)

More than one in seven schools on Raac list were denied urgent funding

Exclusive: Twenty-two schools in England deemed to be in danger because of concrete unsuccessfully applied for ‘exceptional case’ rebuilding

The Guardian - UK

Concrete scandal: Minister issues ‘unreserved apology’ to schools after headteachers blamed

Exclusive: More than 400 school leaders laid out their ‘grave’ concerns about how the government was handling the RAAC concrete crisis

Evening Standard

Where are Britain’s missing schoolchildren?

School attendance is failing to return to pre-pandemic levels as data shows that more than one in five children in England are still frequently absent.

The Week

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Schools concrete crisis: A timeline of crumbling infrastructure, chances missed and warnings ignored

‘Cowboy builders’ Rishi Sunak and Gillian Keegan under fire as government publishes list of 147 institutions of concern over the use of sub-standard material in their construction

The Independent UK

‘I am hugely worried’: parents on the Raac disruption in schools

Four parents describe the impact of the start-of-term school building closures in England

The Guardian - UK

The good news? Raac isn’t always dangerous. The bad news: it’s not just in schools

Alarmist reports won’t help in the lengthy task of locating and treating buildings it’s in, says materials professor Chris Goodier

The Guardian - UK

Thousands of pupils forced to stay home as school starts over concrete concerns

The Department for Education has published a long-awaited list of schools and colleges in England identified as having collapse-prone Raac.

The Independent UK

Some schools with crumbling concrete may have to be demolished, experts warn

Exclusive: Removing Raac can cost millions of pounds in some buildings – and could be ‘straw that broke camel’s back’ for older schools, say specialists

The Independent UK

Keir Starmer likens government to ‘cowboy builders’ over concrete crisis

Labour leader accuses prime minister of neglecting pupils at state schools during combative PMQs

The Guardian - UK

Anxiety levels in school communities ‘high’ due to concrete crisis – union

Headteachers are feeling ‘a very heavy sense of responsibility’, according to the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders.

The Independent UK

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The Conversation

Concrete in schools: how missing data and poor funding contributed to today's closures

In September 2022, schools in England were at risk of bankruptcy as their day-to-day spending threatened to overtake their regular income. A hasty autumn budget included additional revenue funds for schools, coming as a relief to many school leaders.

The Guardian - UK

Leicester school told by DfE to close building finds it has no Raac

Willowbrook Mead primary will now shut for a day to move furniture back after scramble to create new spaces

The Independent UK

Gillian Keegan’s department ‘gave £1m from schools rebuilding pot to company linked to husband’

‘Questions to answer’ claims Labour, after Michael Keegan’s connection to firm with IT contract revealed

The Guardian - UK

Three-quarters of schools hit by concrete crisis are in Tory areas

Guardian analysis of newly published government list shows that 109 of the 147 affected schools are in Conservative constituencies

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Evening Standard

Schools say concrete surveys were sent back month ago after receiving ‘telling off’ letter from government

The row over crumbling concrete is growing as schools claimed they filled in safety surveys “months ago”, after the Education Secretary told headteachers to “get off their backsides” and send back the forms.

The Guardian - UK

DfE accused of covering up crumbling concrete at Scottish school for months

Exclusive: Scottish government sources say they were kept in dark about evidence of decay at a private school in Perthshire

The Independent UK

Crumbling concrete schools would have been rebuilt under scrapped scheme

At least 13 schools now affected by the Raac row would have been included in the axed Building Schools for the Future programme.

The Independent UK

Headteachers angrily accuse Sunak of ‘dumping on them’ in crumbling concrete fiasco

They claim Michael Gove ‘gleefully’ scrapped plans to rebuild schools – and say Sunak’s plan to fix problem would take 440 years

The Independent UK

Concrete schools closure list: What schools have been affected by crumbling RAAC?

More than 100 schools are impacted by the Department for Education’s order to close over safety fears

The Guardian - UK

Boom for prefab classroom makers as England schools’ Raac crisis deepens

Modular buildings hire firm inundated with inquiries from schools needing temporary classrooms

The Guardian - UK

Not just Raac: the newly built English schools also closing over safety fears

While crumbling concrete dominated headlines, the modern, modular construction methods used to make three new schools also failed

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