A teacher at a Bradford school needed hospital treatment after he suffered a powerful electric shock while handling computer equipment.

An inquiry has started into the incident at Buttershaw Business and Enterprise College – one of three new schools built at a combined cost of £70 million which have been at the centre of complaints about construction standards.

The male teacher suffered the shock as he unplugged a portable metal laptop storage trolley from the mains. A laptop computer was plugged into the unit, which charges the machine.

The teacher, who has not been named, was treated by paramedics before being taken to hospital. He was last night recovering at home.

An independent investigation has started involving the contractors responsible for supplying and installing the laptop and the trolley.

Use of the equipment has been suspended while the probe continues.

An independent electrical adviser is investigating the incident, as is Amey, the facilities management firm involved in Integrated Brad-ford, a consortium contracted to build schools for Bradford Council’s Building Schools for the Future programme.

The Council has also informed the Health and Safety Executive.

The laptop trolley was supplied to the school by Integrated Bradford when the consortium completed the school last summer.

Buttershaw head teacher Richard Hughes said: “Investigations are taking place and interim measures have been taken to prevent any chance of a recurrence. The safety of our staff and students is our first priority.”

A spokesman for Integrated Bradford said: “Extensive expert independent testing has so far not returned any fault with the product and has confirmed it meets all applicable safety certifications.

“No other similar incident involving these products has been reported to either Integrated Bradford or the manufacturers. The product is in use at Tong and Salt schools and they are being kept up to date.”

Irene Docherty, Bradford branch secretary of the NASUWT, said: “If the school has put into place all the necessary risk assessments then it has fulfilled the terms of its responsibilities and would therefore have to look at the company which did the installation.”

Barry Grayburn, Bradford Coun-cil’s Building Schools for the Future director, said: “The safety of all staff and pupils is paramount and an extensive investigation of the equipment is being carried out.”

Nottingham-based education and computer furniture firm Monarch UK supplied the laptop storage units. Managing director Andy Harry said: “My gut feeling is that his injury was caused by a build-up of static electricity. Our laptop trolley is virtually an extension cord so we believe there’s no way anything in our trolley caused the injury but there may have been something plugged into it.”

Earlier this week, the T&A reported that Bradford’s first phase of Building Schools for the Future schools – Titus Salt in Baildon, Tong High and Buttershaw – were opened last September with a host of problems including a leaking roof and a swimming pool built without safety signs and an alarm at Tong.

Other common problems were walls decorated with the wrong paint, taps that did not reach over sinks and faltering computers.