The Department for Education is preparing to announce the number of schools in England affected.
Schools in England must shut buildings made with an aerated concrete that is prone to collapse, ministers are expected to announce.
The Department for Education (DfE) is understood to be preparing to outline the number of schools where classrooms will have to be closed because of the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) blocks.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said the “news is shocking, sadly it is not hugely surprising”.
“What we are seeing here are the very real consequences of a decade of swingeing cuts to spending on school buildings,” he said.
“The Government is right to put the safety of pupils and staff first – if the safety of buildings cannot be guaranteed, there is no choice but to close them so urgent building work can take place.
“But there is no escaping the fact that the timing of this couldn’t be worse, with children due to return from the summer holidays next week.”
