Rhondda Cynon Taf and Merthyr Tydfil councils confirm no RAAC concrete found in schools

Both Rhondda Cynon Taf and Merthyr Tydfil councils say they have found no reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) concrete in their schools.
It comes after revelations in recent weeks that RAAC has been used in school buildings in England, with concerns raised over the material’s safety.
On September 4, the Welsh Government Education Minister issued a written statement about the issue.
RCT Council has since confirmed that it has no reported instances of RAAC in its schools.
Officers are now doing further studies, in line with the Welsh Government’s advice.
The council said it will continue to work with the Welsh Government to ensure due diligence is undertaken to keep school buildings safe and well maintained.
The statement from RCT Council said Wales has largely taken a different approach to England in relation to school building maintenance and investment.
It said that while school building programmes in England have been vastly scaled back, both the 21st Century Schools Programme and the Sustainable Communities for Learning Programme in Wales have resulted in “significant capital funding for schools”, with RCT Council benefiting from hundreds of millions of pounds of investment for new and improved school buildings.
It went on to say that based on previous surveys, school facilities in RCT largely fall in to three different categories which do not meet the criteria for buildings typically containing RAAC and these are older Victorian-style school buildings, buildings which consist of light, prefabricated steel frames and wooden roofs, and new or refurbished modern 21st Century School buildings
The council said it will continue to prioritise pupil and staff safety in undertaking further survey works.
Councillor David Hughes, Merthyr Tydfil’s cabinet member for neighbourhood services said: “All schools and council-run childcare settings in Merthyr Tydfil have been inspected and no RAAC has been found.
“With school inspections complete, our inspection team will now move on to survey all other council-owned buildings.” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​