Warwick parents' fears over Raac learning disruption

Emma, whose son Harry attends Myton, said the closure was the latest in a sequence of disruptions

Parents say they are worried about disruption to learning after the start of the school year was delayed by closures linked to potentially dangerous concrete.

Myton School in Warwick had to delay the start of term by three days.

It was one of dozens unable to open as normal because of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), a substance prone to collapse.

One mum said the crisis in the wake of Covid had "broken" learning.

Emma, whose son Harry attends Myton, a secondary school, explained that while it was clear the site would experience disruption after identifying Raac, "the next thing that came into mind was all the other times he has been off - obviously Covid, strikes [and] other issues at the school mean [the children] have probably had four or five days out".

She explained: "It just feels like his learning over the last couple of years has been broken - he's gone into year nine and it feels like it is starting that way again."

Harry said the situation felt like "an extended holiday - it feels like it is a strike day".

Harry said the delay feels like an extended holiday

Schools that identified Raac on the premises had to close or partially close if they could not immediately put safety measures in place.

The government said decisions had been made to "prioritise safety of children, pupils, and staff".

About a third of Myton was closed off. It has since reopened to Years Seven through 11, with the rest of the pupils set to return on Monday.

Kay, Louis's mother, said not all pupils were able to learn remotely

Another mum, Kay, whose son Louis is a Myton pupil, said he was lucky to have the technology to learn from home during disruption.

"Not everyone is in that same position," she said.

Louis added: "It can be stressful not having the teachers there and some questions can be harder if you don't know what they mean.

"[The school has] given us some stuff to learn but I feel like we can't learn too much because we might not understand it."

Louis said home learning could be stressful without teachers there to help

Raac is a lightweight concrete that was used in roofs, floors and walls between the 1950s and 1990s, but as it is aerated, it is not as durable and therefore only has a limited lifespan.

Buildings with the substance were marked potentially dangerous when during the summer a Raac beam at a school collapsed, prompting closures nationwide while safety checks were carried out.

Earlier this week, Myton headteacher Andy Perry revealed the school had applied for funding from the government's School Rebuilding Programme but the application was rejected as the Department for Education said "other schools had a higher need".

Since then, a structural engineer has confirmed Raac panelling in the first floor of the lower-school building, which has maths, languages, art and drama classrooms, a medical room and the canteen.

Mr Perry said he too felt "a lot of frustration" having to delay the start of term.

Mr Perry said delaying the start of term was "frustrating"