§ Mr. GOLDIEasked the President of the Board of Education what are the responsibilities of His Majesty's inspectors in regard to safety of school buildings; and whether he is satisfied that their position in the matter is understood by managers and local education authorities?
Mr. STANLEYThe responsibility for the structural safety of school buildings rests with those who provide buildings for school use: the local education authorities in the case of provided schools and the managers or governors in the case of other schools. His Majesty's inspector draws attention to such defects in the premises of a school as affect their suitability for teaching purposes, and he also calls attention to any indications of structural instability which come to his notice, but it is not part of his duty, nor indeed would it be possible for him to investigate the structural condition of walls, floors, roofs and staircases. While the construction of school buildings normally provides a sufficient margin of safety, it cannot be assumed that the keeping of the visible parts of a building in good repair will always suffice. Through lapse of time and uneven deterioration, there may arise decay, settlements and damage due to traffic vibration, which can only be revealed by expert examination. The circumstances and condition of the buildings must determine the measures of precaution which it is proper to adopt in an individual case. 503W There will be cases, particularly in schools of more than one storey, where consultation between the governors or managers and the local education authority may be desirable, in order to ensure that particular rooms are not used for a purpose, ordinary or extraordinary, for which they are not safe. I am confident that local education authorities, managers and governors generally appreciate their responsibilities, and are to be relied on to take all reasonable steps to ensure that the buildings in their charge can be used without danger.