LATEST NEWS: 'Immediate action' taken as RAAC found at two more Bradford district schools

MORE than 100 schools in England have been identified as having a type of dangerous concrete at risk of sudden collapse.

The Department for Education has told around 150 schools to limit access and partially or fully close buildings due to RAAC concrete. 

RAAC - meaning reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete - is a type of construction material widely used in buildings from the 1950s to the 1990s.

In recent years there have been growing concerns that the material is now beyond its limit.

Many schools across England have been closing buildings or classrooms to make them safe, just as students prepare to return after the summer holidays. 

Here is a full list of affected schools in Bradford and West Yorkshire, according to the latest available information. 

Schools affected by concrete so far

  • Crossflatts Primary School and Eldwick Primary School in Bingley

Bradford Council said access to areas of Crossflatts Primary School and Eldwick Primary School where Raac is present is prohibited and at least eight teaching spaces have been lost, alongside other staffing facilities across both sites and the loss of the kitchen at Crossflatts.

Education will continue at the schools in the short term with alterations to the safe areas so that all children can be accommodated on the school sites.

Interim alteration work is expected to be complete by Sunday, September 3 - but a longer-term plan is in place to provide temporary classrooms at both school's sites.

  • Christ Church Primary Academy in Windhill 

Christ Church Primary was due to reopen to all years following the summer holidays today, after a training day on Monday.

But the school has been closed to years one to six, with only nursery and reception classes able to attend. 

The school said it is working to house Years 5 and 6 in the school hall, which has been deemed as safe. Pupils in those classes should return on Wednesday, entering via the car park and hall door.

A letter from headteacher Philippa Foster has been sent out to parents. 

Meanwhile Bradford Diocesan Academies Trust (BDAT) said it has taken "immediate action".

You can read the full letter here.

  • Baildon C of E Primary School

BDAT - which runs Christ Church Primary Academy and Baildon C of E Primary School - said RAAC has been found in part of the school building. 

A spokesperson for BDAT said: "We will receive further details about the exact location and extent of RAAC in the coming weeks but as a precautionary and safety measure, we will be closing some parts of the school in the interim."

Three of the setting's year groups are being taught at a different location.

Year 2 children have been told to go to Nell Bank, in Denton Road, Ilkley, while pupils in Year 5 and 6 will study at St John's Church Hall, in Hallcliffe, Baildon.

Meanwhile, those in Year 1 are being taught in the school hall at Baildon C of E Primary.

The remaining year groups - nursery, reception, Year 3 and Year 4 - are unaffected and are able to access their classrooms as normal.

  • Holy Family Catholic School in Keighley

Holy Family Catholic School was named in the Government's list of schools with confirmed reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete - known widely as RAAC - as of August 30. 

Students attending the secondary school and sixth form are facing a delayed start to the new school year, the Government confirmed.

Is it safe to send my child to school?

Parents can be assured it is safe to send their children back to school because the vast majority of questionnaires on the structural soundness of buildings say “there is no RAAC”, the schools minister has said.

Schools and other education settings will let you know directly if there is any change to the start of term. 

Nick Gibb MP told Times Radio: “Parents can be assured that if they haven’t heard from schools, that it is safe to send their children into school.”

In a statement on the Government website, a spokesperson confirmed not all schools affected by RAAC need to close.