New school ‘riddled with 1,200 faults’

Anger over £28million campus built by private company

A NEW school campus which w as shut down over safety fears is riddled with 1,200 faults, it has been claimed.

The £28million building was closed earlier this month after a pupil was injured by a falling whiteboard.

North West Community Campus in Dumfries had been temporarily closed last month after a pupil was struck by a sliding door that came off its rails.

Yesterday, councillors were told that around 1,200 ‘issues’ had been identified during a survey of the building, some of which pose ‘operational health and safety risks’.

Furious council chiefs have said the campus will remain closed until ‘every bolt, screw and fitting has been checked’.

Dumfries and Galloway Council said it had ‘lost confidence’ in assurances it had been given by building contractor Graham.

It was decided soon after the closure that ‘independent wellestablished firms of architects, planners, engineers and designers... should be immediately appointed to undertake further surveys’ in order to ‘ensure there are no further defects or non-compliances within the school that could result in injuries to staff, pupils or other building users’.

Councillors were told at a meeting in Dumfries yesterday that around 1,200 faults were found during these surveys.

Council leader Elaine Murray said: ‘There are certainly some [faults] which the report identified as potentially being hazardous and could have caused accidents.

‘Others are more minor snagging issues which are often common in all new buildings.’

Issues were identified across all areas of the building, from the fixing of pinboards and whiteboards to the installation of ventilation ducts and electrical cabling. Faults were also found in the floor finishing, decoration, landscaping, fencing, lockers and shelving.

A report into the current situation at the school campus, presented at the meeting, stated: ‘A significant logistical operation has been under way since the closure, involving unions, the Health and Safety Executive, Care Inspectorate and Education Scotland, as well as local partners like police and fire.’

Graham said that it ‘fully supported’ the checks by independent experts and promised that the repair works would ensure the completed campus is ‘of the highest quality’.

The council has also asked the public-private partnership company Hub South West to meet the cost of relocating pupils from the campus to other schools within the area.

‘Could have caused accidents’