Latest news with #RAAC
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Politics
- Daily Mirror
Kids taught in cupboards as brutal school reality laid bare after neglect
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said she was appalled at the lack of investment in schools as she vowed a huge cash injection would finally turn things around Labour's education chief has voiced her anger at seeing children being taught in stationery cupboards and noisy dinner halls because schools are in a state of disrepair. Bridget Phillipson told The Mirror that inadequate buildings have a "profound" impact on young learners, who say they struggle in class as a result. Her remarks came as the Government announced a huge cash boost to crumbling schools, hospitals and courts to tackle years of neglect. Chancellor Rachel Reeves unveiled a 10-year plan to address the "decay that has seeped into our everyday lives" - with 750 schools in England set for a rebuild. Education Secretary Ms Phillipson said she was appalled by the disruption the discovery of dodgy concrete had caused two years ago, as well as neglect in schools across the country. More than 100 school buildings had to be closed after reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) - which was used for decades to save cash - was found, sparking fears of imminent collapse. Ms Phillipson said: "I visited a number of schools that were affected by RAAC, but also in schools that were struggling with completely inadequate buildings. "The impact that that had was children having lessons in a stationery cupboard that had to be converted into a classroom, a situation where the dining hall had to be given over to become a maths classroom because the maths block was out of action. "All of that has a profound impact on children's ability to learn." And describing the impact on kids she said: "The children find it disruptive. "And what they've told me is that if you're learning in a very hot, overcrowded environment, that makes it really hard to learn and to concentrate. "It makes it hard for teachers to deliver a brilliant education as well. My experience growing up was also spending quite a lot of my time in secondary schooling in portacabins. "You kept your coat on in the winter because it was so cold, and in the summer it was absolutely boiling. And that just made it very hard to learn. It's still happening." The Government announced a £38billion capital boost for England's schools by the end of the decade. Maintenance funding for schools will also rise to nearly £3billion a year by 2035. Ms Phillipson said she is confident that all RAAC cases have been identified and dealt with. She said: "I think we all recognise that it's completely unacceptable that so many children ended up going to schools that were literally being propped up by steel girders.. "There can be no more defining image of the last government than children sat in classrooms with props to stop the ceiling from falling in. "But we've got to move beyond that and not just deal with the immediate problems of decay, but also to look at a brighter future for children as well." The Government says its 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy will create a jobs boost and drive investment into the UK. The Education Secretary was yesterday(THUR) joined by Ms Reeves on a visit to Wrotham School in Kent, which is undergoing a £42million rebuild. Headteacher Michael Cater told The Mirror investment in modern facilities has a big impact on pupils. "It shows we respect their education," he said. As well as schools investment the Government has vowed to eliminate reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) from NHS buildings. Prisons in England and Wales will be awarded at least £600million a year to improve safety and security amid growing alarm in the justice sector. There will also be cash for "enhanced" law courts to ensure cases are dealt with faster. Ms Reeves said: "Infrastructure is crucial to unlocking growth across the country, but for too long investment has been squeezed. "Crumbling public buildings are a sign of the decay that has seeped into our everyday lives because of a total failure to plan and invest." TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: 'Britain has long been crying out for a serious, long-term infrastructure plan. Across our schools, hospitals, reservoirs and railways we have invested too little for too long. 'We have a vital opportunity to rebuild our country after more than a decade of Conservative mismanagement and neglect. We must grab it with both hands."
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Rachel Reeves announces huge boost for crumbling schools, hospitals and courts
Britain's crumbling schools, hospitals and courts will receive billions of pounds of investment after years of Tory neglect, the Government has announced. Today Chancellor Rachel Reeves unveils a 10-year plan to finally tackle soaring maintenance bills. The Government has pledged £10billion a year to repair public buildings over the next decade. On top of this there will a huge £725billion in longer-term funding, with hundreds of schools set for sweeping rebuild projects. This will include a £38billion boost for England's schools by the end of the decade. The Chancellor has pledged that investment in schools, which were left reeling by the dodgy concrete scandal two years ago, will hit nearly £3billion a year by 2035. Ministers have pledged to make sure the failings of the botched HS2 project are never repeated. The Government has set out its 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy, which it says will provide much-needed certainty to attract investment and jobs. Progress will be monitored by the Government's new National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA), which was set up earlier this year. A damning report by the National Audit Office earlier this year said it would cost an enormous £13.8billion to repair the country's schools. In August 2023 more than 100 school buildings were ordered to shut because reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) had been identified. The lightweight material - which is cheaper than sturdier concrete - has been used in public buildings since the 1960s. Today the Government said it is giving a long-term commitment to improve the standard of school buildings. The School Rebuilding Programme will include an investment of nearly £20billion over the next decade. This will fund rebuilding projects at over 500 schools in England, while a further 250 will be identified in the next two years.
Daily Record
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Record
West Lothian RAAC campaigner walks out of Holyrood meeting in disgust
The National UK RAAC campaign had asked for the Scottish Housing Regulator to expand powers to include owners of former council homes. A campaigner fighting to get more help for home-owners hit by the RAAC scandal walked out of the Scottish Parliament in disgust after MSPs rejected their petition. The National UK RAAC campaign had asked for the Scottish Housing Regulator to expand powers to include owners of former council homes. But a meeting of the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee 'refused to budge' according to veteran campaigner Livingston RAAC campaigner Kerry Macintosh. She told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that when the call to change rules was declined: 'I was so angry when I came out of the committee room. It was very hard not to say anything. I stood up and said 'shocking' and walked out.' Speaking after the meeting she told the LDRS: 'The people in parliament, the SNP government. They don't give a toss. They are not listening to what people are going through. They are overlooking things that are affecting peoples lives. 'This is as bad as the Post Office scandal. I'm just so annoyed at watching how homeowners are getting treated. 'The people in parliament are not living with what the people with RAAC in their homes are living with- the stress, the fear and the worry. There's five and half thousand people in Scotland suffering with this.' RAAC affected homeowners from across Scotland had gathered outside Holyrood on Wednesday morning ahead of scheduled hearing of a petition submitted by the UK RAAC Campaign group calling for an urgent amendment to the remit of the Scottish Housing Regulator to include private owners of ex-council properties. Currently, the SHR's responsibilities are restricted to social tenants-those who rent from councils or housing associations. This means that when a private homeowner in an ex-council house discovers dangerous materials like RAAC, they have no regulator to turn to, no statutory advocate, and no co-ordinated government response. The petition called for an alternative creation of an altogether new body to ensure that owners of ex-council homes are protected during structural crises such as the one currently unfolding because of the use of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete RAAC in the 1960s/ 70s. Campaign leader Wilson Chowdhry has written to the new Housing Minister Mairi McAllan asking her to meet with home owners in Tillicoultry and West Lothian.
Edinburgh Reporter
2 days ago
- Politics
- Edinburgh Reporter
Campaigner walks out of Holyrood in disgust as petition rebuffed
A campaigner fighting to get more help for home-owners hit by the RAAC scandal walked out of the Scottish Parliament in disgust this afternoon [Wednesday] after MSPs rejected their petition. The National UK RAAC campaign had asked for the Scottish Housing Regulator to expand powers to include owners of former council homes. But a meeting of the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee 'refused to budge' according to veteran campaigner Livingston RAAC campaigner Kerry Macintosh. She told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that when the call to change rules was declined: 'I was so angry when I came out of the committee room. It was very hard not to say anything. I stood up and said 'shocking' and walked out.' Speaking after the meeting she told the LDRS: 'The people in parliament, the SNP government. They don't give a toss. They are not listening to what people are going through. They are overlooking things that are affecting people's lives. 'This is as bad as the Post Office scandal. I'm just so annoyed at watching how homeowners are getting treated. The people in parliament are not living with what the people with RAAC in their homes are living with- the stress, the fear and the worry. There's five and half thousand people in Scotland suffering with this.' RAAC affected homeowners from across Scotland had gathered outside Holyrood on Wednesday morning ahead of scheduled hearing of a petition submitted by the UK RAAC Campaign group calling for an urgent amendment to the remit of the Scottish Housing Regulator to include private owners of ex-council properties. Currently, the SHR's responsibilities are restricted to social tenants—those who rent from councils or housing associations. This means that when a private homeowner in an ex-council house discovers dangerous materials like RAAC, they have no regulator to turn to, no statutory advocate, and no co-ordinated government response. The petition called for an alternative creation of an altogether new body to ensure that owners of ex-council homes are protected during structural crises such as the one currently unfolding because of the use of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete RAAC in the 1960s/ 70s. Campaign leader Wilson Chowdhry has written to the new Housing Minister Mairi McAllan asking her to meet with homeowners in Tillicoultry and West Lothian. By Stuart Sommerville, Local Democracy Reporter Like this: Like Related
Edinburgh Live
2 days ago
- Politics
- Edinburgh Live
West Lothian RAAC campaigner walks out of Holyrood meeting in disgust
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info A campaigner fighting to get more help for home-owners hit by the RAAC scandal walked out of the Scottish Parliament in disgust this afternoon [Wednesday] after MSPs rejected their petition. The National UK RAAC campaign had asked for the Scottish Housing Regulator to expand powers to include owners of former council homes. But a meeting of the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee 'refused to budge' according to veteran campaigner Livingston RAAC campaigner Kerry Macintosh. She told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that when the call to change rules was declined: 'I was so angry when I came out of the committee room. It was very hard not to say anything. I stood up and said 'shocking' and walked out.' Speaking after the meeting she told the LDRS: ' The people in parliament, the SNP government. They don't give a toss. They are not listening to what people are going through. They are overlooking things that are affecting peoples lives. "This is as bad as the Post Office scandal. I'm just so annoyed at watching how homeowners are getting treated. The people in parliament are not living with what the people with RAAC in their homes are living with- the stress, the fear and the worry. There's five and half thousand people in Scotland suffering with this.' RAAC affected homeowners from across Scotland had gathered outside Holyrood on Wednesday morning ahead of scheduled hearing of a petition submitted by the UK RAAC Campaign group calling for an urgent amendment to the remit of the Scottish Housing Regulator (SHR) to include private owners of ex-council properties. Currently, the SHR's responsibilities are restricted to social tenants—those who rent from councils or housing associations. This means that when a private homeowner in an ex-council house discovers dangerous materials like RAAC, they have no regulator to turn to, no statutory advocate, and no co-ordinated government response. The petition called for an alternative creation of an altogether new body to ensure that owners of ex-council homes are protected during structural crises such as the one currently unfolding because of the use of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete RAAC in the 1960s/ 70s. Campaign leader Wilson Chowdhry has written to the new Housing Minister Mairi McAllan asking her to meet with home owners in Tillicoultry and West Lothian.
