Mistley school finds new site for pupils due to safety risk

A primary school in Essex that closed its buildings earlier this year over safety risks says it has found alternative teaching space for pupils.

Mistley Norman Church of England primary closed its site in April because of an aging lightweight concrete found in ceiling panels.

Parents were encouraged to find a new school for their children.

However, the governing trust said there was space to accommodate pupils at another school from September.

Emma Wigmore, the chief executive of the Vine Schools Trust, said children would be transported the 15-mile (24km) round trip by bus to Two Village C of E Primary School in Ramsey near Harwich.

The site is a sister school operated by the same trust.

The Department for Education (DfE) asked schools in March last year to check buildings for any suspected reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

The material was used in the roofs, floors and walls in public buildings between the 1960s and 1980s and has an expected lifespan of 30 years.

A DfE report, published in December, said the concrete "increases the risk of structural failure, which can be gradual or sudden with no warning".

Mistley Norman caters for 96 children aged two to 11 and pupils have been taught in rented classrooms at Lawford C of E primary three miles away.

The Two Village school, on the other hand, is operated by the Vine Schools Trust.

Ms Wigmore said the trust was discussing with the DfE and Essex County Council as to whether it could recover costs spent on transport and new uniforms.

Despite parents being encouraged to find alternative provision, she said only five families were believed to have taken their children out of Mistley Norman.

Rebecca Kemp, 44, who has a five-year-old son at the school, told BBC Essex: "It's not an ideal arrangement.

"I would much prefer my child to be going to his local school; the school we chose for him; the school that is nearby to our house.

"But it is better than the current arrangement... they will be in a much more structured school environment with better facilities for them there."

Ms Kemp said there was an ongoing campaign from parents and carers and added: "We will fight tooth and nail for our local school to be open again."

A DfE spokesperson declined to say whether the department could provide funding to help reopen the school but said: "The safety of pupils and staff is paramount.

"Where it is suspected that RAAC is present in a school, such as at Mistley Norman primary school, we take action based on professional advice which includes funding capital works to remove any immediate risk and, where absolutely necessary, the provision of temporary buildings."

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