Ministers must reveal school buildings at risk of collapse

Responding to the Commons vote scheduled for today (Tuesday) by Labour to attempt to force the Government to publish information showing the location and extent of school buildings it has admitted are “very likely” to collapse, Dr Patrick Roach, General Secretary of the NASUWT-The Teachers’ Union, said:

“It is unacceptable for the Government to sit on vital information that affects the day to day safety and welfare of children, young people and staff working in schools.

“School staff and parents have a right to know if their schools are at risk and what is being done to ensure the safety of their schools.

“That we have a situation where some schools are at risk of collapse is the result of years of chronic under-investment in our education system and the school buildings estate by this Government.

“Schools are now counting the cost of the Government’s reckless decision a decade ago to abandon the Building Schools for the Future programme. Rebuilding and refurbishment investment is at a fraction of what is required to keep pupils and staff able to learn and work safely.

“Recent funding announcements are simply insufficient to make up for the decade plus of cuts and under-investment in the schools estate.

“Ministers have a duty to reveal where these dangerous school buildings are, explain what steps they are taking to urgently make them safe and to commit to an investment programme that means pupils and staff will never find their safety compromised in this way again in future.”