RAAC confirmed at 2 more colleges, says DfE

Crumbly RAAC concrete has forced two more colleges to close parts of their sites, the Department for Education has said.

The DfE now lists 214 schools and colleges with confirmed cases of RAAC, up by 41 on the last list published on September 19, when 173 were named.

Camborne College, which is part of Cornwall College Group, and Peterborough College, which is part of Inspire Education Group, have been added to the list which now includes six colleges.

One specialist post-16 college, Royal College Manchester (Seashell Trust) is also listed.

The list, updated as of October 16, states that all the colleges have kept their students in face-to-face education.

There are now no schools or colleges listed with full-time remote learning. But 12 schools are listed as having a “mix of face-to-face and remote arrangements”.

The DfE list also includes three schools where it said it had found RAAC was “not present after initial tests”.

FE Week understands Inspire Education Group found RAAC on the main building of Peterborough College which is used predominantly for teaching.

It found RAAC following internal surveys and then requested financial help for independent surveys. Inspire Education Group felt all areas were in a “safe state”, according to a response by the college group to a Freedom of Information request sent by FE Week.

The college’s situation mirrors that of Farnborough College of Technology, which criticised the government’s indecision around RAAC guidance last month. While guidance earlier this year suggested RAAC could be safe and did not call for immediate closure of all buildings found with RAAC, that guidance changed in late August. From then, all colleges and schools had to close parts of buildings or buildings with RAAC immediately.

Camborne College has also had to shut part of its site after it found RAAC in part of the roof at the Penhaligon building, on the western side of the campus.

John Evans, chief executive of the Cornwall College Group said all staff and students were “immediately relocated” to other parts of the campus with “no interruption to their learning”.

“The majority [were moved] to brand new spaces that have come online as part of the multi-million-pound redevelopment of our Camborne campus,” he added.

“We have been reassured by the DfE that they will now deal will the necessary rectification works.” The DfE committed to funding the remediation of RAAC in all schools and colleges, while it will consider funding other costs on a “case-by-case basis”.

That could include transport costs if replacement sites are far away from campus.

Inspire Education Group has been approached for comment.

The other colleges affected by RAAC are Grantham College, Marple Sixth Form College – part of The Trafford College Group, and Petroc.

The DfE’s full RAAC list as of October 16