Northampton school confirmed to have RAAC assures the extent is ‘minimal’ and ‘limited’ to areas of roof

An update has been issued by a Northampton school confirmed to have Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC), assuring that the extent is “minimal” and it is “limited” to a small number of specific areas in its roof.

Northampton International Academy was the first school in the town to restrict part of its building, while precautionary survey work was carried out.

Access to the top floor of the academy, including 18 classrooms, the sixth form area and staff room, was prohibited ahead of the new academic year.

The announcement of the closure of the top floor was made on September 4, with concerns that RAAC could be in the roof.

It has since been confirmed that NIA’s roof does contain RAAC, as it was included in a list of the confirmed schools with the building material issued by the government.

Despite the discovery of RAAC, the school is pleased to remain open to all pupils, staff and visitors as only the top floor of the building is impacted.

This will remain the case when any remedial works are carried out – as stated in a comment issued by Martin Serráo, executive headteacher of NIA, on September 4.

In an updated comment issued to this newspaper, a spokesperson for Northampton International Academy said: “The inspections have been completed, the extent of RAAC is minimal and limited to a small number of specific areas in the roof.

“We have a Department of Education RAAC project director and have begun discussions on planning the long-term solution.

“NIA remains open and we are continuing to deliver the full curriculum timetable within our existing facilities. Restricting access to the top floor is a precautionary measure and the school building is entirely safe for pupils, staff and visitors.”

What do we know about Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC)?

Concerns have continued to rise over a lightweight form of concrete called RAAC, formally known as Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete.

The material was most commonly used in the construction of public buildings between the 1950s and 1970s. However, it is made in a way that makes it “much weaker” than traditional concrete, says the Standing Committee on Structural Safety.

The Department for Education has been providing guidance and funding to manage the potential risks of RAAC since 2018, but new cases have made them “less confident” that buildings containing the material should remain open without extra safety measures in place.

The main concern for the government has been educational settings. As of August 30, 156 schools were confirmed to have RAAC – with 52 that had mitigations already in place and the rest were working to put them in place.

Following the initial news of the discovery of RAAC in buildings, the Department for Education’s X account provided background on the matter and said: “In cases as recent as August, buildings containing the material have failed unexpectedly, requiring decisive action in order to keep staff and pupils safe.”