"Pupils affected by Raac must be given chance to bid for higher grades", says Lib Dems
Essex was branded the worst affected county in the country for reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) in schools at the start of the academic year.
Last updated 14th Aug 2024
Thousands of pupils who have had their schooling disrupted by the concrete crisis should be allowed to bid for higher grades through a special appeals process, the Liberal Democrats have urged.
Ahead of A-level results day, Lib Dem education spokesperson Munira Wilson said the Government must give support to families affected by the “chaos” of Raac through a special appeals process for students.
A report by academics in January called for pupils at schools where teaching has been badly affected by the Raac crisis – such as St Leonard’s Catholic School in Durham – to have their exam results lifted by up to 10%.
But a one-off dispensation has not been granted to all pupils in exam years who faced disruption to their learning and teaching due to Raac.
An estimated 7,600 A-level students and 19,700 GCSE pupils are in schools with collapse-risk reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac), according to House of Commons Library research commissioned by the Lib Dems.
Ms Wilson said: “Thousands of children have had their education severely disrupted by crumbling concrete making their schools unsafe.
“The previous Conservative government abandoned children and parents, leaving a legacy of crumbling classrooms. The new Government must now ensure pupils and parents impacted by these years of chaos are given the support they need.
“That is why the Liberal Democrats are calling for a special appeals process for A-level students affected by crumbling concrete, to ensure they get the grades they deserve.
Essex was the 'worst hit' county in the country with 70 schools at risk of collapse.
The list included Honywood School in Coggeshall, near Braintree, which was told in August 2023 that it had to close half of its site - including 22 classrooms.
Pupils returned in October after two blocks of modular classrooms were built.
Other schools named on the list were Clacton County High School, The Billericay School and The Gilberd School, in Colchester.
"Special consideration" process
This year, exam boards have offered extended coursework deadlines – up to 45 days – to schools and colleges which have struggled to access specialist facilities for non-examination assessments due to Raac.
Schools and colleges have been able to apply under the established “special consideration” process – where marks can be adjusted to take into account unforeseen circumstances – if pupils had to sit their exams in conditions which were “less favourable than normal” due to Raac, the Ofqual chief has said.
It would be "difficult" to allow a special uplift to pupils' results in all schools affected by Raac
Earlier this week, Sir Ian Bauckham, chief regulator of Ofqual, said it would be “difficult” to allow a special uplift to pupils’ results in all schools affected by Raac and then not make adjustments for other factors such as teacher shortages.
When asked whether the current mitigations in place were enough to recognise the disruption that pupils faced as a result of Raac, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “The challenge within this is making sure that we maintain the integrity of the exam system overall.
She added: “What I’ve been clear about with the regulators concerned is that they ensure that institutions are aware where disruption has taken place and are able to consider it in terms of offers that they may be making.”
Ahead of A levels results day, Jo Saxton, chief executive of Ucas, said Raac was an “extreme piece of context” that has affected students and it was “appropriate that admissions teams should be aware of that”.
A spokesperson for the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) said:
“We have worked closely with the Department for Education and Ofqual to recognise the difficulties students have faced and to put in place appropriate measures to mitigate these
“These included extending deadlines for non-examined assessment work and opportunities for special consideration to be awarded where students had to take exams in unsuitable conditions, such as a noisy environment or with building work taking place.
“We appreciate that students may still have concerns and we would like to reassure them that if their school or college believes their results have been affected by Raac disruption during the exam series, they can still apply for special consideration after Thursday.”
A list of schools that have been affected around the UK can be found here