To RAAC and Ruin

Amid the ongoing RAAC crisis, Joe Heraghty looks at what the implications are for schools affected by the issue and who will need to navigate the current planning system.  Could expanding Permitted Development rights for Schools be the answer? 

 

After the Government announced the immediate closure of more than 150 school buildings constructed from a type of lightweight concrete that is prone to collapsing, Councils throughout the United Kingdom have been scrambling to establish alternative school facilities following the commencement of the new school year.

 

Schools are likely just the tip of the iceberg, with hospitals, theatres, courts and now airports also being found to have been impacted by the use of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC), a lightweight form of the material used between the 1950s and mid-1990s.

 

A Government inquiry, at first only covering school buildings, but now encompassing all public buildings, is ongoing and it isn’t clear how long the inquiry will take or what funding will be available to mitigate the emergency.  The UK government has promised to cover the expenses of renting temporary classrooms and moving students.

 

Many Councils have moved to install temporary school buildings in the form of portacabins or modular buildings. Despite the urgent nature of the situation, the installation of temporary school buildings still requires planning permission.

 

Given how critical the unfolding crisis is, it is essential that planning permission for alternative school buildings is secured in as prompt a manner as possible. Class M of the General Permitted Development Order, for the erection, extension or alteration of a school can be utilised to expedite the planning process, subject to certain criteria being met. One such criterion is that cumulative gross floor space of any buildings erected, extended or altered would not exceed either 25% of the existing footprint of buildings, or 250sqm, whichever is greater. Other rights exist to cover the temporary use of buildings as a state-funded school for a single academic year.

 

Whilst the existing permitted development rights are relatively generous, they would exclude the temporary installation of full school facilities and would likely be restricted to replacing a single classroom(s) affected by RAAC.  Depending on the nature of the temporary provision, they also do not always directly apply. So, although useful for small-scale school development, perhaps now is a time where the Government should consider relaxing the limitations set out within Class M of the Permitted Development Order, in a bid to more effectively mitigate the issue.

 

Given the scale and urgency of the issue, it is unlikely that permitted development rights would be able to deal adequately with temporary school buildings to overcome this issue.  Could the Government, therefore, further relax these rights for a temporary period, or grant schools that are affected exemptions from enforcement action to allow them to open temporary classrooms in the interim?  Each of these options provides difficulties in planning terms and in themselves aren’t quick fixes. 

 

In any event, given the current resourcing problems being faced by many planning departments across the country, the planning process is unlikely to be quick and the Government needs to now realise that the proper investment and resourcing of local planning authorities is one of the bedrock foundations to ensuring the country meets its duty of ensuring education of its young, housing of its population and its economic prosperity.

 

As a practice DHA are already leading on projects for full planning permission to install temporary school facilities to provide pupils with a place to learn amidst the concrete crisis. We are currently preparing an application for a replacement school that has by this issue, with their current cohort resorting to lessons from temporary buildings.  Our education team is primed to lead an expedited planning application process for temporary school buildings and replacement facilities, given the many successful education planning applications DHA have achieved in the past.

 

For more information on how DHA can assist with emergency school applications throughout the UK, feel free to reach out to Matt Blythin, Matt Garvey, Rebecca Tilley or Joe Heraghty at DHA, who have extensive experience in delivering school development.