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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
National
Sally Weale Education correspondent

‘Staggering incompetence’: DfE under fire as new school buildings closed

Education minister Nick Gibb
Education minister Nick Gibb said the DfE had carried out a review that identified problems with the modular design of the schools. Photograph: Victoria Jones/PA

The government has been accused of “staggering incompetence” after new school buildings it commissioned had to be closed due to safety fears, while others under construction were demolished before they even opened.

Main buildings at two secondary schools and a primary school in England, which were all completed relatively recently using a modular, off-site construction method, were told to close with immediate effect, disrupting the start of the new term for many pupils.

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