Council ‘not aware’ of any dangerous concrete in Powys school buildings

Elgan Hearn – Local Democracy Reporter

Powys County Council is “not aware” of any schools that contain concrete that can cause buildings to collapse, its leader has said.

On August 31 it was revealed that more than 100 schools in England have been told that they need to shut classrooms or put safety measures in place because they contain concrete that could collapse suddenly.

The UK Government has said that some of the schools will need to find alternative accommodation while safety measures are put in place.

The issues come from the use of Reinforce Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) as a building material from the 1950s up to the mid-1990s.

Survey

According to the UK Government the advice has been given after a concrete beam collapsed over the summer.

Powys council leader, Cllr James Gibson-Watt said: “At present, we are not aware of any local authority schools in the county that contain RAAC.

“The council previously investigated the matter in 2020.

“However, following the recent developments and the additional guidance that has been issued, we are now in the process of undertaking a small number of additional survey inspections of our schools and the wider corporate estate.

“Surveys on the highest priority buildings have already been completed with no evidence of RAAC being present.

“We are working hard to ensure all other surveys are completed as soon as possible and we expect to conclude the additional work within the next few days.”

Infrastructure is a devolved power, and the Welsh Government has said that it has commissioned a condition survey of all state funded schools and colleges to identify any buildings suspected of containing RAAC.

So far in Wales, two secondary schools in Holyhead and Menai Bridge on the Isle of Anglesey and St David’s concert hall in Cardiff have been identified as containing RAAC.