UK PM Rishi Sunak facing crisis over crumbling schools
- Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak denies responsibility for concrete crisis in schools
- Closures of buildings at more than 100 schools came just before start of school year
British lawmakers headed back to Parliament this week after their summer break. But thousands of UK children won’t be returning to their classrooms, because their schools are at risk of collapse from crumbling concrete.
The news is a start-of-term headache for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as he scrambles to shore up flagging support for the governing Conservative Party ahead of a national election next year.
Sunak insists it’s not his fault that more than 150 schools were told last week – days before the start of the new school year – to shut some or all of their buildings because they contain a type of lightweight, air-filled concrete widely used in construction between the 1950s and the 1990s.
School leaders are scrambling to find classroom space in nearby establishments or resorting to online instruction after the government’s last-minute directive, sparked when three schools thought to be safe suffered collapses over the summer.
The government says the “vast majority” of schools are not affected by problems with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete. The material, known as RAAC, is lighter and less expensive than standard reinforced concrete – but also weaker, with a useful life of about 30 years.
