Faulty concrete likely in Wales, says building expert

Faulty concrete is likely to have been used in some schools and other buildings in Wales, an expert claims.

The UK government has told more than 100 school, college and nursery buildings in England to shut.

Powers over infrastructure are devolved in Wales, but construction expert Keith Jones said contractors may not have recognised this boundary.

The Welsh government started surveying all state-funded schools and colleges in May.

However, it said no councils or colleges have reported any instances of the use of lightweight reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), which was commonly used from the 1960s to the 1990s.

"I would suspect that it is used [in Wales]... when you're a designer, you're a contractor, you won't recognise 'this is in England, this is in Wales'," said Mr Jones, director of the Institution of Civil Engineers Wales Cymru.

"So it's likely that [RAAC] is not just in schools, it could be in any public buildings," he told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast.

RAAC is a light "bubbly" concrete, which meant it was used in roofs, but that it doesn't have the "inherent strength of reinforced concrete and has a limited shelf life".

"I think the important thing to remember is that it is different, it is identifiable, it's got this bubbly texture," Mr Jones said.

The Health and Safety Executive said RAAC was "now life-expired", and was "liable to collapse with little or no notice".

Withybush Hospital, in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, recently moved patients after the concrete was found there.

The material was also found in a "limited part" of Bronglais Hospital in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion.

At Nevill Hall Hospital, in Abergavenny, four offices, part of the restaurant and the chapel were closed earlier this month after RAAC was identified.

However, Aneurin Bevan University Health Board said the hospital was in a "different position" to Withybush and that no patient areas were affected.

The Welsh government has said RAAC does "not appear to be a widespread issue" in hospitals in Wales, and that all health boards have been asked to carry out survey work.

Colegau Cymru and the University of South Wales are the only Welsh education settings to confirm to BBC Wales News they are not impacted.

North Wales Police and Dyfed-Powys Police have confirmed none of their buildings contain RAAC, and South Wales Police has said none of its "main buildings" do, with a small number still being surveyed.

Mr Jones said buildings using RAAC "could collapse, (that's) why we welcome this survey that the Welsh government are about to undertake".

"And it isn't just the children, it's the teachers in the schools and all the other public buildings that could be at risk."

Laura Doel, director of headteachers union NAHT Cymru, said: "So far no [councils] have flagged concerns when it comes to schools, but we are assured the review is ongoing.

"It is crucial that any schools that find themselves in this situation receive immediate support."

The Welsh government said: "Earlier this year we commissioned a condition survey of all state funded schools and colleges which will identify any structures suspected of containing RAAC.

"Local authorities and further education institutions have not reported to us any instances of RAAC being present within schools or colleges."

Plaid Cymru's education spokesperson Heledd Fychan, said: "The Welsh government must urgently identify if any buildings are unsafe and if so, take urgent steps to ensure that no one is put at risk."

Welsh Conservative shadow education minister Laura Anne Jones said any risk of injury to children was "completely unacceptable".

"The safety of children is paramount; the Welsh government must act quickly," she added.