Parents angered after secondary school forced to temporarily close over balcony safety concerns

William Brookes School in Much Wenlock was shut to all pupils on Tuesday after an engineer raised safety concerns about balconies at the education centre.

The school said "significant efforts" had been made to enhance the safety of the balconies at the site last year. However, a recent inspection found that further reinforcement is required to "fully comply with public and commercial building regulations".

On Wednesday, Year Seven and 13 pupils were able to return to the school, while Year 11 pupils were back on Thursday.

Parents of schoolchildren at William Brookes are angered that further work and a closure has been necessary after previous work to improve safety was carried out last year.

An anonymous parent of a Year Eight pupil speaking to the Shropshire Star directed their frustration towards the 3-18 Trust that runs the school.

"We knew something had gone wrong last year and they they had work done, but we assumed it was all done and great," said the parent.

"There was no warning of the closure, so for those parents who work or single parents it's caused great issues.

"It's not the staff, none of this is their fault - it's the trust.

"It's the trust that makes these decisions, not the school."

William Brookes School said pupils who have returned to the school will be working on the ground floor or in areas of the school away from the balconies.

Other parents replying to a Shropshire Star Facebook post reported that the school has previously closed due to "boiler issues".

A reply to the post said: "My grandson goes to this school. If it's not a snow day, flooding, boiler issues and now balcony issues - it feels like he spends more time away from school than in."

Another parent of a pupil at the secondary school said: "It's an absolute shambles, my eldest son is in his third year there now and I've never known a school like it.

"They have more days closed than a seasonal pop-up shop. The boiler has been out of action numerous times, flooding and 'extreme' weather has closed it, now they've closed for a minimum of four weeks to anyone who isn't Year Seven or 11 because a safety issue has been identified with works they said they were addressing during the summer."

The 3-18 Trust that runs the school maintains that work was put in to enhance safety of the school's balconies, and that pupils' safety is of "paramount importance".

A statement from the trust said: "William Brookes School is a wonderful place to be educated, with dedicated and hardworking staff who strive to create the best possible environment for our students.

"Significant efforts were made to enhance the safety of the balconies at the school last year, however, as communicated to parents and carers yesterday, a recent inspection has determined that further reinforcement is required to fully comply with public and commercial building regulations.

"The school have conducted a comprehensive risk assessment and taken the decision to temporarily reduce the number of children present on school premises to prioritise student safety. We are committed to implementing the necessary solutions as soon as possible.

"The safety of our students and staff is of paramount importance, and we will continue to prioritise the safety of our school sites to the highest standard.

"We appreciate the understanding and support of our community as we undertake this essential work to ensure the continued safety and wellbeing of everyone at William Brookes School."