The names of courts where potentially dangerous concrete has been discovered can be revealed in full for the first time.
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) confirmed in early September that reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) had so far been found in seven of its court buildings.
Harrow crown court was identified in mid-August when the decision was taken to close the building for up to nine months to remove RAAC in the roof.
A month later, Preston magistrates court also had to close thanks to concrete within its structure.
However the MoJ refused to name any other courts that could be affected by the issue.
Thanks to a Freedom of Information request, the Standard can now reveal that Blackpool County Court, Blackpool Magistrates Court, Bradford and Keighley Magistrates Court, Doncaster Justice Centre North, and Liverpool Queen Elizabeth II Law Courts were all found to contain RAAC during a survey of court buildings in 2020 and 2021.
Together with Harrow and Preston, the court in Doncaster has also been closed down for “remedial work”, the MoJ said.
And it confirmed that RAAC was found at Barnstaple magistrates court in 2019, and removed the following year.
The original survey for RAAC only assessed court buildings that were constructed or modified in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s when RAAC was widely used.
But after the discovery at Harrow – a courthouse opened in the 1990s – a fresh survey was ordered by the MoJ into other buildings that may be affected.
The government has so far refused to identify any other courts where RAAC has been found in the new survey, claiming release of this information could “misinform the public”.
In a note on the FoI response, the MoJ says: "All HMCTS courts and tribunals that are open are deemed safe. This is not limited to RAAC but all aspects of our sites, buildings and grounds.
"We are investing £220m over the next two years for essential estate modernisation and repair work across England and Wales, to improve the overall quality and enhance the resilience of the court and tribunal estate."
Dozens of school buildings were shutdown in the concrete crisis on the eve of the new term in September, with the Department of Education publishing a full list of those affected.
The Department of Health has this week published a list of 42 hospitals where RAAC has been identified.
