Thirty-nine schools have temporarily or permanently closed since December 2019 because their buildings were unsafe.
The admission from government, made in answer to a Parliamentary written question from Liberal Democrat education spokesperson Munira Wilson, is the latest evidence of the crumbling condition of England’s school estate.
Last week, it emerged that the Department for Education had admitted it does not know which schools are at risk of collapse, despite escalating the risk level of school buildings collapsing to “very likely”.
Schools minister Nick Gibb said since December 2019, the DfE had been “made aware of 39 schools that have closed on a temporary or permanent basis, because one or more school buildings have been deemed unsafe”.
This was due to a “range of reasons, including structural concerns and general condition issues, such as roofing and boiler failures”.
Wilson said the statistics were “shocking”, and showed how “crumbling schools have now become commonplace”.
“The government has been ignoring warnings from its own officials that some school buildings are unsafe, let alone fit for purpose.”
Of 31 schools that temporarily closed, 23 closed fully and eight partially. The remaining eight were permanent closures, with three closing fully and five partially.
When schools did close, pupils were relocated to other spaces on their sites or to alternative accommodation “until a long-term solution is in place”.
Trusts and councils responsible, says Gibb
The government has been under mounting pressure to publish more detail on the condition of the school estate, after a 2021 document revealed that repairing or replacing all defects in England’s schools would cost £11.4 billion.
The DfE escalated its own risk level of school buildings collapsing to “very likely” in its annual report and accounts last year.
But when asked for details under freedom of information by support staff union Unison, the department said the number of buildings at risk and the names of the schools affected were “not held”.
Gibb said today that responsibility for ensuring the safety and condition of school buildings “lies with the responsible bodies, such as local authorities, trusts and voluntary aided bodies”.
The government provides “support to schools” and has allocated over £13 billion since 2015 for “keeping schools safe and operational”, he added. This included £1.8 billion this financial year, “informed by consistent data on the school estate”.
However Gibb said responsible bodies were “not obliged to report building-related school closures” to the DfE.
“The Department does not routinely collect or hold complete data of the information requested. Since 2019, the department has been capturing the closures that have been reported due to a range of issues, including building safety issues.”
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