Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) and management of school estates

Education Committee Open Non-inquiry session
Opened: 14 Oct 2025 Parliament page
This one off session follows up the RAAC crisis in schools in the summer of 2023 and the work that followed by DfE and schools to remediate faulty end-of-life concrete in school buildings. It will also look into school estate management more broadly to consider other problems within the built … Read more
8 Recommendations
8 Conclusions
1 Report
1 Oral session
1 Event
Activity timeline 4 events
17 Apr
2026
Report published
11 Feb
2026
Report published
28 Oct
2025
Oral evidence
28 Oct
2025
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Thatcher Room, Portcullis House
Oral evidence sessions 1 session
28 Oct 2025
View on parliament.uk
Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) and the management of school estates
Bryony Green · Aldridge Education Dr Jonathan Dewsbury · Department for Education Josh Macalister OBE MP · Department for Education Mr Andy Walls · NAHT - The school leaders' union Mr Patrick Hayes · The Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) Professor Chris Goodier · Loughborough University Rob Thomas · The Educational Building and Development Officers Group of local authorities
Title HC No. Published Items Response
7th Report - Foundations of Learning: replacing RAAC and securin… HC 1399 11 Feb 2026 16 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
4 results
Clear
6 Recommendation Accepted in Part
7th Report - Foundations of Learni…
Require all school bodies to undertake structured surveys and risk assessments of higher-risk buildings.
The DfE should require all responsible bodies managing potentially problematic structures within the school estate to undertake a structured survey and risk assessment of higher-risk building types at least every three to five years. (Recommendation, Paragraph 39) Read more
Government Response
The government partially accepts the recommendation, agreeing that regular surveys are essential and that responsible bodies should have up-to-date condition surveys for their buildings, and that the frequency for updating a condition survey will depend on a building’s characteristics. It will ask responsible bodies to make a light touch annual return via the new digital service Manage Your Education Estate from Autumn 2026 to confirm they are meeting the School Estate Management Standards.
Department for Education
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13 Conclusion Accepted in Part
7th Report - Foundations of Learni…
Ageing system-build schools pose hidden risks without deeper structural surveys and enriched information.
System-build schools are a legacy of a different era: built fast, with limited design life, and now ageing under conditions they were never intended to endure. While we welcome the DfE’s proactive research and its early indications of no widespread … Read more
Government Response
The department is committed to publishing findings from the Older Buildings Research and will publish a summary of a technical findings and outline the steps we will take to address them.
Department for Education
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14 Recommendation Accepted in Part
7th Report - Foundations of Learni…
Release full system-build research results and set clear actions based on those findings promptly.
The DfE should release the full results of its system-build research as soon as they are available and no later than its own timescale of Spring 2026, and set out clear actions based on those findings. (Recommendation, Paragraph 58)
Government Response
The department is committed to publishing findings from the Older Buildings Research, with technical findings expected in Spring 2026, and will publish a summary of a technical findings and outline the steps they will take to address them before the summer.
Department for Education
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15 Recommendation Accepted in Part
7th Report - Foundations of Learni…
Establish a long-term programme to replace or modernise high-risk system-built school blocks.
We recommend that the Government establish a long-term programme to replace or modernise system-built blocks most at risk, aligning investment with safety priorities. (Recommendation, Paragraph 59)
Government Response
The government has partially accepted, stating they are investing almost £20 billion in the School Rebuilding Programme through to 2034-35 but do not anticipate including any specific system or construction types as a matter of course.
Department for Education
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Government Response AI assessment · 16 of 8 classified
Accepted 5
Accepted in Part 4
Acknowledged 6
Rejected 1
Total 8 recs + 8 conclusions