Nothing is more important than the safety of pupils and teachers. This is why the Department has been significantly investing in transforming schools across the country. Where there are serious safety issues with a building, the Department takes immediate and swift action to ensure the safety of pupils and school staff. There are no open areas within schools or college buildings where the Department knows of an imminent risk to life.<\/p>
The Department has allocated over £15 billion since 2015 for keeping school buildings safe and in good working order, including £1.8 billion committed for 2023/24. In addition, the School Rebuilding Programme will transform buildings at 500 schools, prioritising poor condition and potential safety issues.<\/p>
It is the responsibility of those who run schools \u2013 academy trusts, Local Authorities, and voluntary aided school bodies \u2013 who work with their schools day to day to manage the safety and maintenance of their buildings. The Department provides support on a case by case basis if it is alerted to a serious safety issue which responsible bodies cannot manage independently.<\/p>
Since March 2022, the Department has been working with responsible bodies, schools, and colleges to identify the presence of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in their buildings. Where RAAC is suspected, the Department\u2019s professional surveyors carry out assessments to verify its presence, and if confirmed, the Department provides rapid support to schools on the advice of structural engineers. This could include funding capital works to remove any immediate risk and, where necessary, the provision of temporary buildings. Longer term remediation of RAAC is supported by capital funding provided to the sector, the Department\u2019s rebuilding programme, and urgent capital support.<\/p>
I received representations on unitarisation in Buckinghamshire from the following local business organisations: Buckinghamshire Business First, Buckinghamshire Business Group, Chiltern Chamber of Commerce, Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce; 18 individual local businesses also made representations. Information about grant funding and support provided by local authorities to business organisations is not held centrally. The Local Government Transparency Code 2015 requires local authorities to publicise specified data on financial transactions including publishing details of all grants to voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations.<\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4483", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Rishi Sunak"}
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, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Rishi Sunak"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2018-11-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
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, "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2018-11-21T13:51:10.943Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
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, "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Housing, Communities and Local Government"}
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, "date" : {"_value" : "2018-11-15", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
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], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Written Statement of 1 November 2018, Local Government Update, HCWS 1058, from which businesses and organisations in Buckinghamshire he has received representations on local government reorganisation; and what information his Department holds on the amount of grant funding or financial support those businesses and organisations have received from Buckinghamshire County Council in the last three years.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/18", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Dame Cheryl Gillan"}
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<\/strong><\/p>"}
, "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/111", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Nick Gibb"}
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, "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Nick Gibb"}
, "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-07-11", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
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, "date" : {"_value" : "2023-07-03", "_datatype" : "dateTime"}
, "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Schools: Buildings"}
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, "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"}
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], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the National Audit Office report Condition of school buildings, published on 28 June, HC1516, which schools pose a risk to the safety of pupils and staff because of potential structural failure due to disrepair or unsafe building materials or methods.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"}
, "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/146", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Barry Gardiner"}
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