Gillian Keegan: how’s the ‘hot mic’ thing gone down with you?

[Crinklycut]

For my part, I don’t think it was very ministerial, and I do wonder how No. 10 all talk to each other these days (do they just swear all the time?) BUT she is a bit right, isn’t she?

The DfE have finally acted to make the public aware that their children are not safe in school. That’s more than anyone else in the Conservative party has done since they cancelled ‘Building Schools for the Future’ in 2010 and during their 13 years of government.

So how’s it gone down with you?

At least 39 school closures due to unsafe buildings since 2019 for various reasons.

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2023/feb/21/at-least-39-schools-closed-in-last-three-years-in-england-due-to-unsafe-buildings

Yes. Presumably by the people responsible for funding the capital costs. Which would be the DfE. More specifically the DfE under the Tory government who slashed the capital building funds which would deal with this issue.

Not quite?

The DfE took out the bit about the hammer last week.

In fact, here are the full instructions. Nowhere is it “a headteacher going round with a hammer.” To me it seems like a clear and easy to read document. I know you utter despise anything right of centre noble, but sometimes you do protest too much!

I really don't, check the amendments on the 2nd page of your link.

Can't imagine why they took out the bit about the hammer.

I wondered what was sent out

Oh my goodness I don't believe that instruction to Heads - hammer or no hammer!!

Interesting that the guidance on identifying RAAC was first issued on 14th Dec 2022 when the survey asking headteachers whether they had RAAC was sent out in March 2022.

So how were they meant to answer the survey if the guidance on identifying whether they had RAAC wasn't sent out for another 9 months?

(To be clear, up till last week it was to tap walls with hammers).

So if it was known about in the nineties, labour was in power 1997-2010 they didn't do anything about it then did they? They had 13 years to tackle the issue and couldn't be bothered either...

You've heard of the Building Schools for the Future programme to replace every school building, right?

Exactly. The Tories cancelled the BSF programme in 2010. And frankly, still blaming everything on Labour when you’ve been in power for 13 years doesn’t cut it.

@pepino
Labour were going t9 rebuild every school but Give cancelled the programme when the Tories came into power in 2010.

Gove not Give 🤣

That really is a roll-call of shame. Seven Secretaries for Education in 5 years -why are they not embarrassed.

@Tippexy do you think something as serious as this should be left to headteachers etc instead of professional surveyors? Who is going to pay for all these surveys?

So as Labour and Tory Government have ignored the problem in the past, stop trying to score political points, work together and spend the money and solve the problem.

I don't mind the unseemly language so much as the fact that the Tories were told their was a critical risk to our children's lives in 2018 and they did the square root of fuck all about it.

The issue has been a live one since 1994.

Labour were in power from 1997 - 2010 and during that time they introduced a school building programme to deal with it.

Michael Gove cancelled it in 2010.

The first serious RAAC related school collapse that I know of was in 2018.

The Tories were told there was a critical risk to life in 2018.

It's now 2023.

This problem is an issue in thousands of schools and an urgent issue in about 2000 schools.

Is one of them your children's school?

How would we know?

Are our children safe at school?

Or children.

To be fair to the Tories in 2019 they did provide a £400 million fund that schools and colleges could draw upon to fund building repairs.

Except schools couldn't actually draw upon it unless they were academies.

Are our children safe at school?

Clearly not because most headteachers don't know what a woman is or RAAC.

Do you mean the whole document?

HT should be able to use that and if they are not sure follow what to do next

Any HT on here? Did you read it and use it as a guide, or was it hard

Maybe it was difficult

"I do, however, think Sky were very naughty to let that go out. She clearly thought she was off air. "

First rule of public life. "All mics are live."