An educational trust has been fined £80,000 after 15 schoolchildren and their teacher were injured when their classroom ceiling collapsed during a lesson.
Tables and chairs being stored in the attic above fell on fifteen Year 3 pupils, aged between seven and eight, and their teacher when the ceiling fell in at Rosemead Preparatory School in Dulwich, London, on 15 November 2021.
The teacher and 12 pupils were taken to hospital where they were treated for fractures, cuts and concussion.
There were 16 pupils in the class but one student was by the doorway when the incident happened at the fee-paying prep school for children aged two-and-a-half to 11.
Thurlow Educational Trust in Dulwich was fined £80,000 for the incident and ordered to pay £7,116.31 in costs at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday 29 August.
The Trust pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found items such as desks and chairs were stored in an unsuitable area in the school’s attic, which was not designed to be load-bearing and led to the ceiling collapsing.
Chairs and desks stored in the attic above fell on the teacher and pupils during a lesson
( Health and Safety Executive )
The HSE investigation also found that Thurlow Educational Trust had failed to undertake any structural or load-bearing capability assessments of the area being used to store the items, and had failed to assess whether the area was appropriate to be used for the storage of the desks and chairs.
HSE inspector Samuel Brown said the “mental and emotional impact” of the incident on those injured “should not be understated”.
“This incident has resulted in injuries to multiple young children due to the failings of the school to ensure that chairs and tables were safely stored above their classroom,” Mr Brown said.
“Schools should be a place where children can come to learn from teachers and one another without having to worry about their safety.
“Fortunately, this incident did not cause any more serious injuries, but the mental and emotional impact of such an event should not be understated.
“Employers need to take action to ensure that building stability and solidity problems are not caused through overloading areas not designed to bear weight. As proven, the failure to do so can have severe consequences.”
Chair of the Thurlow Educational Trust Nick Crawford said: “The events of 15th November 2021 will forever be marked as one of the most challenging in the school’s history. We recognise how deeply distressing it was for those involved. On behalf of the school, we would like to express our sincere regret and apologies that the incident happened.
“The health and safety of our pupils, staff and the wider school community is of paramount concern to us. The school has fully cooperated with the HSE investigation and taken significant steps since the incident to ensure that its health and safety arrangements are as robust as they can be.”
In February, a coalition of seven unions warned Education Secretary Gillian Keegan that urgent action must be taken by the government to ensure deteriorating school buildings “at risk of collapse” are made safe.
In an open letter to Ms Keegan, the unions warned deteriorating school buildings could end up “costing lives” if the government does not take action to carry out repairs.
It came after a Department for Education (DfE) report acknowledged that some school buildings are at risk of collapse, a finding the teaching unions called “shocking”.
