Thanet council is identifying authority owned buildings in the district to check whether any contain Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) but says there is currently no evidence of affected properties.
Concerns about the ‘unstable’ concrete were sparked nationally this summer after the collapse of an RAAC beam at a school.
Nationally around 24 schools need to close and 150 schools in England need to urgently address the presence of unstable concrete.
RAAC is a lightweight form of concrete used in roof, floor, cladding and wall construction in the UK from the mid-1950s to the mid-1980s but there have been recent roof collapses resulting in action by the Department for Education issuing advice about school closures.
In Thanet Birchington primary and King Ethelbert School have been affected and both sites have brought in temporary measures while the problems are dealt with. Both schools are open to students as normal.
King Ethelbert School is working with the Department for Education to secure new, permanent buildings.
A Thanet council spokesperson said: “There is currently no evidence that RAAC is found in any properties owned by Thanet District Council.
“We are identifying council-owned buildings that were constructed when RAAC was in use as a building material, to make sure that they are not affected.
“We started a programme to survey all our major buildings earlier in 2023. This will identify required repairs, maintenance issues and the presence of RAAC.”
Last week Rory Love, the Cabinet Member for Education and Skills at Kent County Council, said: “Over the course of the summer the DfE indicated that further information had come to light regarding the performance of the RAAC material which meant it had taken the difficult decision to go further than the previous guidance that was issued by the Institution of Structural Engineers earlier this year.
“As a result, the DfE notified any responsible body where RAAC has been confirmed as being present to close the affected areas with immediate effect until mitigation works have been undertaken.”
