•••SchoolchaosasbuildingsareshutovercollapsefearsschoolleadersrespondedwithangerwhentheDfEsaiditwouldnotfundemergencymeasuresneededtokeepteachinggoing,placingextrapres-sureonstretchedschoolbudgets.TheNationalEducationUnion,representingteachers,describedthesituationas“absolutelydisgraceful”andwarnedof“massivedisruption”tochildren’seducation.Thelatestdevelopmentrepresentsasharpescalationofabuildingsafetycrisisthathasbeenbrewingforyears.Aeratedconcretewaswidelyusedinschoolsfromthe1950stothe1990s.Ithasanestimated30-yearlifespan.TheDfEsaidschoolbuildingsmadeusingreinforcedautoclavedaeratedconcrete(RAAC)shouldbe“takenoutofuseandmitigationsshouldbeimple...