A primary school has been closed after being found with RAAC despite being inspected for collapse-risk concrete back in May.

Parents of kids at St James’ Catholic Primary School in Hebburn, South Tyneside face finding last-minute childcare after their school was among more than 100 found to be built with RAAC.

The school was initially inspected back in May, then again in June, and the Department for Education (DfE) told them to close one section of the building back in July.

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But now the entire building will have to close with just one day’s notice, despite pupils due to return on Tuesday (September 5).

Brendan Tapping, CEO, Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust which St James' is part of, said: “The Department for Education (DfE) has recently changed its guidance to education settings on the management of RAAC to take a more precautionary approach and as a result areas with RAAC will be vacated until safety mitigations are put in place.

“Three of our Trust schools are affected, and we have notified parents. The schools are St. James Catholic Primary School, Hebburn, St. John Bosco Catholic Primary School, Sunderland and St. Bede and Byron Catholic School and Sixth Form, Peterlee.

“The education and safety of our pupils remains paramount, and we are currently working with headteachers to finalise alternative arrangements and are looking to make provision for all pupils.

“We are committed to continuing to educate pupils face-to-face or make virtual provision where this is not possible. We would like to thank our pupils, parents and staff for their understanding and patience.”

Jarrow Labour MP Kate Osborne said: “For the Department of Education to give schools one working day notice that they cannot fully open from Monday is completely unacceptable.

“The DFE has known about this problem for years, this isn't new information. They were told RAAC was not safe in 2018, yet they only surveyed the schools to check the condition in May and June this year.

“I understand the guidance has changed from closing areas where RAAC had been identified as critical to closing all areas where RAAC had been identified - however as critical RAAC was found in June and July in some of these schools, including the school in my constituency action could and should have been taken over August.

“As of yesterday afternoon, the school in my constituency didn't know if they could open on Monday or not - when I asked the DFE if they could confirm they said they didn't know that specific information. However it seems from my call with the Minister this morning and emails from the DfE (1st September) the school will not open for staff on Monday or for students on Tuesday.

“Informing them today leaves less than one working day for the headteacher to make arrangements and inform staff and parents.

“This is a complete shambles.”

RAAC was used in construction between the 1950s and mid-1990s and is prone to failure. Back in 2018 the roof of a Kent primary school collapsed and RAAC was later found to be to blame.

On Thursday the government said it would not publicly reveal the 104 institutions told to shut buildings.

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Education Secretary Gillian Keegan told broadcasters: “Most parents should not be worried about this at all.”

The government faced criticism for the timing of the announcement days before the end of the summer break, but schools Minister Nick Gibb told GB News on Friday morning that “we took the decision as soon as the evidence emerged.”

He added: “We took a very strict decision over the summer, we liaised with experts, and we took a cautious approach to make sure, because safety of children and staff in our schools is of the utmost importance.

“So we took the decision that the previous policy, which was to take buildings out of use if the RAAC was considered to be in a critical state, we changed that policy yesterday so that any RAAC identified in schools, now those buildings will be taken out of use.”