Children, support staff and teachers are returning to UK classrooms which are in danger of collapsing at any time. Between 1960 and 1990 hundreds of schools were built, by using a type of cheap concrete which is most likely to collapse by the end of a 30-year lifespan. Government has known of the dangers since 1995.
Recently Minister Nick Gibb from the Conservative government school mentioned to the media that, three days before schools were due to open, that over the summer a beam collapsed on the school premises, despite though there was no external signs, but it was a critical risk.
With teachers and children at risk being crushed to death, the government decided to close a few schools, but it has still not released a full list if those known to be dangerous.
Even though the building doesn’t collapse, any form of structural damage could rain down deadly asbestos dust from insulation in around 81% of primary and secondary state schools in England. This means any remedial work will be complex and extremely costly.
Research for the Unison union mentioned that a child starting school in England in 2012 lost out on a cumulative £5,384 in funding over their 13 years in the education system as annual spending per child was reduced. A survey by the National Association of Head Teachers found that over 50% of schools anticipate being over budget in 2022-23 and 90% in 2023-2024, threatening job losses.
Schools face unprecedented crisis in teacher retention and recruitment due to less pay, long work weeks up to 60 hours and a bureaucratic, regimented system of targets and teaching criteria which mitigate against any child- centered learning. Class sizes have ballooned, with primary schools reporting sizes of 35, and heads on some secondary schools expecting to increase by 60. Head teachers are considering to shorten the school day or move to a four-day week.
The unions are deflecting the anger of their members down the blind alley of supporting the right-wing Labour party led by Sri Keir Starmer in the next general election. Starmer was instrumental in working with the Tory government to achieve the unsafe reopening of schools. He was very clear that there will not be an extra penny to spend on education or to address the cost-of-living crisis and basic social needs- with any additional spending channeled solely to the armed forces and waging war against Russia in Ukraine.
Educators must take the fight out of the hands of the corporatist trade unions and build rank-and-file committees in schools and workplaces. This is a part of a global strategy to unify the struggle of the working class by building the IWA-RFC (International Workers’ Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees) to fight for socialism.
