A school leaders’ union has called on the chancellor to commit to sufficient funding in the Spring Budget to completely rid schools of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
In its submission for the budget, the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) said schools affected by RAAC could face a financial detriment for years to come.
The ASCL also called for a new recovery funding stream for those schools impacted by RAAC and renewed its demand for an uplift of £4.4 billion to the annual schools capital budget.
ASCL funding specialist Julia Harnden said schools “were barely given a mention” in the autumn statement and that the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, must not make the same mistake again.
“The neglect of the school estate must be addressed as a matter of urgency,” she said.
RAAC crisis ‘not a short-term problem’
“The RAAC crisis is not a short-term problem. Schools affected are already reporting reduced admission applications for September and face financial detriment for many years to come.
“There must be a commitment to eradicating RAAC from the school and college estate, and ensuring all pupils and staff can work in buildings that are fit for purpose.”
Alongside this, the ASCL called on the government to uplift high-needs funding by £4.6 billion and introduce a VAT reimbursement scheme for colleges.
The submission to the budget said funding allocated to high needs “is disappearing into the black hole of deficit recovery and is not getting to the front line, where it can make a difference and meet need”.
The ASCL also asked the government to make funding available for pay awards, provide financial protection for schools with declining rolls as a result of RAAC, protect minimum per-pupil funding and retain Covid catch-up funding.
The union estimated that £0.76 billion would be allocated to Covid recovery - such as the National Tutoring Programme and recovery premium - in 2023-24 and called for this to be extended to 2024-25.
Tes revealed last week that second surveys looking for RAAC in harder-to-reach areas of schools were ongoing.
The Department for Education has been contacted for comment.
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