Source · Select Committees · Education Committee
7th Report - Foundations of Learning: replacing RAAC and securing school buildings
Education Committee
HC 1399
Published 11 February 2026
Recommendations
6
Accepted in Part
Require all school bodies to undertake structured surveys and risk assessments of higher-risk buildings.
Recommendation
The DfE should require all responsible bodies managing potentially problematic structures within the school estate to undertake a structured survey and risk assessment of higher-risk building types at least every three to five years. (Recommendation, Paragraph 39)
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Government Response Summary
The government partially accepts the recommendation, agreeing that regular surveys are essential and that responsible bodies should have up-to-date condition surveys for their buildings, and that the frequency for updating a condition survey will depend on a building’s characteristics. It will ask responsible bodies to make a light touch annual return via the new digital service Manage Your Education Estate from Autumn 2026 to confirm they are meeting the School Estate Management Standards.
Department for Education
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7
Rejected
Commission a national digital register of asbestos in education estate with annual compliance reporting.
Recommendation
We further recommend the Government commission a national digital register of asbestos in the education estate and annual reporting on HSE compliance and asbestos removal achieved through capital programmes. (Recommendation, Paragraph 40) Wider concerns about the condition and maintenance of …
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Government Response Summary
The government does not accept the recommendation as it would duplicate existing legal requirements and require significant resource with no clear indicator that asbestos exposure risks would be improved, and could undermine the active requirement on duty holders to manage asbestos.
Department for Education
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10
Accepted
Publish and implement the promised estate strategy to reduce maintenance backlog and replace school buildings.
Recommendation
The Government should publish and implement its promised estate strategy without delay, setting clear milestones for reducing the maintenance backlog and replacing life-expired buildings. (Recommendation, Paragraph 50)
Government Response Summary
The government states that they already published the Education Estates Strategy on 11 February 2026 which sets out clear milestones for implementation and includes detailed milestones in annex A for responsible bodies, schools and colleges.
Department for Education
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11
Accepted
Provide targeted guidance, training, and funding for all responsible bodies to meet estate management standards.
Recommendation
We recommend that the DfE provide targeted guidance, training, and funding to ensure all responsible bodies, particularly smaller Multi- Academy Trusts, can meet estate management standards effectively. (Recommendation, Paragraph 51)
Government Response Summary
The government will set clear estate management standards and expectations, make guidance more accessible, and provide additional materials like a digital self-assessment tool. They will also ask responsible bodies to make an annual return to confirm they are meeting the School Estate Management Standard, and are investing almost £3 billion per year by 2034–35 in capital maintenance.
Department for Education
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12
Accepted
Maintain and publish accurate, up-to-date data on the school estate's condition and progress.
Recommendation
The Government must maintain and publish accurate, up-to-date data on the condition of the school estate, including progress against remediation and rebuild targets, to build public confidence and accountability. (Recommendation, Paragraph 52) 19
Government Response Summary
The government accepts the recommendation and will go further on data and digital transformation, building on the consistent and high-quality data collected through the Condition Data Collection Programme; they will also publish common data and digital structures from April 2026 and introduce two-way data sharing by 2028.
Department for Education
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14
Accepted in Part
Release full system-build research results and set clear actions based on those findings promptly.
Recommendation
The DfE should release the full results of its system-build research as soon as they are available and no later than its own timescale of Spring 2026, and set out clear actions based on those findings. (Recommendation, Paragraph 58)
Government Response Summary
The department is committed to publishing findings from the Older Buildings Research, with technical findings expected in Spring 2026, and will publish a summary of a technical findings and outline the steps they will take to address them before the summer.
Department for Education
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15
Accepted in Part
Establish a long-term programme to replace or modernise high-risk system-built school blocks.
Recommendation
We recommend that the Government establish a long-term programme to replace or modernise system-built blocks most at risk, aligning investment with safety priorities. (Recommendation, Paragraph 59)
Government Response Summary
The government has partially accepted, stating they are investing almost £20 billion in the School Rebuilding Programme through to 2034-35 but do not anticipate including any specific system or construction types as a matter of course.
Department for Education
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16
Accepted
Align school building investment with SEND inclusion to create excellent learning environments.
Recommendation
Reflecting on the Committee’s wider recent work, particularly on SEND, we recommend that the Government seeks to ensure that when investment is being made to address safety concerns and to replace or refurbish the most outdated school buildings, it aligns …
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Government Response Summary
The government accepted the recommendation, stating that they want buildings to be inclusive by design so that all pupils, especially those with SEND, can learn in high-quality, comfortable and supportive environments, and are investing at least £3.7 billion in high needs capital funding between 2025-26 and 2029-30 to create 60,000 specialist places.
Department for Education
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Conclusions (8)
1
Conclusion
Acknowledged
Taken together, the RAAC emergency represents more than an isolated safety risk, it is symptomatic of a chronic capital investment deficit. Restoring resilience to the school estate requires sustained, strategic investment, a clear commitment to long-term infrastructure renewal and recognition that the quality of physical environments is an essential pillar …
Government Response Summary
The government welcomes the report and states that the committee's findings contribute meaningfully to their wider programme of work.
2
Conclusion
Acknowledged
The removal and remediation of RAAC from school buildings has been essential to safeguarding pupils and staff. We recognise the significant progress made by the Government and the Department for Education in identifying affected sites, implementing emergency measures, and committing resources to address this challenge. These efforts have prevented greater …
Government Response Summary
The government welcomes the report and states that the committee's findings contribute meaningfully to their wider programme of work.
3
Conclusion
Acknowledged
However, the process has not been without cost. For school leaders, teachers, and above all pupils, the experience has been stressful and has affected learning and well-being. In those schools where RAAC remains an ongoing issue, temporary solutions cannot substitute for permanent fixes. (Conclusion, Paragraph 32)
Government Response Summary
The government welcomes the report and states that the committee's findings contribute meaningfully to their wider programme of work.
4
Conclusion
Acknowledged
We welcome the Government’s pledge that, by the end of this Parliament, every school building containing RAAC will either have had it removed or be in the process of a rebuild. This is an ambitious and necessary commitment. We will continue to monitor progress closely to ensure that this promise …
Government Response Summary
The Government welcomes the Education Committee’s Seventh Report and thanks the Committee for its thorough examination of RAAC in schools and for the broader consideration of the condition, management and long- term resilience of the education estate.
5
Conclusion
Acknowledged
We recognise the substantial efforts undertaken since 2023 to safeguard pupils and staff, and to restore continuity of learning in settings affected by RAAC. The Department has improved guidance, begun to professionalise 18 estate capability, strengthened resilience arrangements, and committed to greater transparency through the development of a live digital …
Government Response Summary
The government welcomes the report and states that the committee's findings contribute meaningfully to their wider programme of work.
8
Conclusion
Acknowledged
The RAAC crisis highlighted a deeper, systemic issue: the ageing and fragile condition of England’s school estate. RAAC is not the only issue of concern within the wider school estate. While we welcome the Government’s commitment to publish a long-term strategy and its recent steps to improve standards and oversight, …
Government Response Summary
The government welcomes the Education Committee's report and states that the committee's findings contribute meaningfully to the Education Estates Strategy, backed by a 10-year plan for a decade of national renewal to transform schools and colleges in England.
9
Conclusion
Accepted
Funding should move beyond short-term patching and repairs toward comprehensive upgrades and rebuilds, prioritising schools beyond their design life and those posing the greatest safety risks. (Conclusion, Paragraph 49)
Government Response Summary
The Government claims it is already addressing the issue of school funding through the Education Estates Strategy, the School Rebuilding Programme (investing almost £20 billion through to 2034-35, covering 750 schools) and almost £3 billion per year invested by 2034–35 in capital maintenance. Renewal and Retrofit Programme is backed by over £700 million to 2029-30.
13
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
System-build schools are a legacy of a different era: built fast, with limited design life, and now ageing under conditions they were never intended to endure. While we welcome the DfE’s proactive research and its early indications of no widespread risk, without deeper structural surveys and enriched information, the Department …
Government Response Summary
The department is committed to publishing findings from the Older Buildings Research and will publish a summary of a technical findings and outline the steps we will take to address them.