RAAC Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete in Wirral

John Jones made this Freedom of Information request to Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council Automatic anti-spam measures are in place for this older request. Please let us know if a further response is expected or if you are having trouble responding.

The request was successful.

Dear Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council,

In relation to all buildings the council owns, occupies, leases out, allows others to use, manages, funded or funds, maintains, is in any way responsible for or operationally related to in any way, or any other properties at all that the council has any knowledge of or view on, please -

1) state how many properties the council have identified as having any RAAC (Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete)

2) state how many properties the council have identified as potentially having RAAC but have yet to confirm

3) state how many properties the council classifies in relation to RAAC in any other way or ways than the groups in question 1 and 2

3) provide a list of the properties in each group of questions 1 and 2 and 3, and within the lists also confirm the current use of each building

4) provide details of the council's current plan to identify any outstanding potentially affected properties and in that case also confirm how many properties the council has yet to form an initial assessment of whether potentially affected, also the current plan for confirming affected properties and interim safety measures for both potentially and actually affected properties and longer term rectification plans.

Yours faithfully,

John Jones

InfoMgr, FinDMT,

Dear John Jones

 

Further to your recent enquiry under the Freedom of Information Act 2000
regarding the use of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC), we
must advise that that the Council’s engineer is currently working through
all Council-owned buildings to determine the facts.

 

At this time, we are not in a position to provide you with an immediate
answer.  We can confirm however that to date, all school buildings have
been checked in relation to RAAC and NO schools have been found to have
RAAC present.

 

We are in process of assessing all other council buildings within the
Authority’s Portfolio but this is an ongoing task that will take
considerable time to complete.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Lynette Paterson

Principal Information Management Officer

Resources – Digital and Improvement

Wirral Council

PO Box 290
Brighton Street
Wallasey
CH27 9FQ

 

Email: [1][Wirral Borough Council request email]

 

Visit our website: [2]www.wirral.gov.uk

 

 

 

 

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References

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1. mailto:[Wirral Borough Council request email]
2. http://www.wirral.gov.uk/

Dear InfoMgr, FinDMT,

Problems with RAAC have been known for a long time, when did your process of assessment begin? Also how many properties had been assessed up until the end of 2022?

The process need not progress or be complete before you answer how many and which properties have already to date been identified as having RAAC, and those potentially having it and any other classification in relation to it you have formulated.

You can add a note to your answers to my requests that your assessment is incomplete but still provide the information you currently have.

Yours sincerely,

John Jones

Dear InfoMgr, FinDMT,

......subject to a note that process incomplete and an indication of timescale for that process being complete I cannot see any reason why all my requests 1 to 4 cannot be responded to on the basis of the current information held by the council?

Yours sincerely,

John Jones

Dear InfoMgr, FinDMT,

You state all schools have been checked, please confirm whether there are any schools for which their having been checked did not include an in person on site inspection by the council's engineer.

Yours sincerely,

John Jones

Dear Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council's handling of my FOI request 'RAAC Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete in Wirral'.

More than 20 working days have passed since my original request and due to my responses to your initial holding response I believe your suggestion you cannot respond is invalid.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/r...

Yours faithfully,

John Jones

InfoMgr, FinDMT,

Dear Mr Jones

 

In reply to your email of 5 September 2023 we can respond as follows:

 

Problems with RAAC have been known for a long time, when did your process
of assessment begin?  Also how many properties had been assessed up until
the end of 2022?

 

The inspection of assessment started on 14-01-2019 and all school
buildings were included in the assessment. All school buildings were
assessed by 06-02-2022. Wirral has 3 Nursery Schools, 97 Primary Schools,
12 Special Schools and 20 Secondary Schools, a total of 132.

 

The process need not progress or be complete before you answer how many
and which properties have already to date been identified as having RAAC,
and those potentially having it and any other classification in relation
to it you have formulated.

 

No Wirral Council properties have been found to have RAAC at present.
Surveys on other council buildings are ongoing. We can confirm that we are
following advice contained in the ‘Safety Briefing Notice Letter’ issued
07.09.2022

 

You state all schools have been checked, please confirm whether there are
any schools for which their having been checked did not include an in
person on site inspection by the council's engineer.

 

Approximately 80% of the 100+ schools did not require an inspection on
site. The large number of primary schools are single storey and have a
timber roof or built outside the specified dates for RAAC.

 

......subject to a note that process incomplete and an indication of
timescale for that process being complete I cannot see any reason why all
my requests 1 to 4 cannot be responded to on the basis of the current
information held by the council? You can add a note to your answers to my
requests that your assessment is incomplete but still provide the
information you currently have. 

 

At present, approximately 36% of other council buildings have been
checked. No RAAC present to date (82 out of 228)

 

Yours sincerely

 

 

Lynette Paterson

Principal Information Management Officer

Resources – Digital and Improvement

Wirral Council

PO Box 290
Brighton Street
Wallasey
CH27 9FQ

 

Email: [1][Wirral Borough Council request email]

 

Visit our website: [2]www.wirral.gov.uk

 

 

 

 

This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended
solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed.
If you have received this email in error please notify the system manager.

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[Wirral Borough Council request email]
2. http://www.wirral.gov.uk/

Dear InfoMgr, FinDMT,

Two months ago you said that approximately 36% of other council buildings (non-schools) had been
checked at that point and no RAAC had been found (82 out of 228).

Please update the figures with how many more of the 228 have now been checked and confirm details of any RAAC found or that none has been so far.

Yours sincerely,

John Jones

InfoMgr, FinDMT,

Dear Mr Jones

The Council's Structural Engineer has completed the inspection of all properties held by Wirral Council and we can confirm that he has found no RAAC present in any of the buildings.

Yours sincerely

Lynette Paterson
Principal Information Management Officer
Finance – Digital and Improvement
Wirral Council
PO Box 290
Brighton Street
Wallasey
CH27 9FQ

Email: [Wirral Borough Council request email]

Visit our website: www.wirral.gov.uk

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