Edinburgh school closure inquiry to begin after school holidays

The City of Edinburgh Council has confirmed that an independent inquiry into the schools closure crisis will begin after the summer holidays, after 17 schools were closed due to building safety fears.

The schools were closed in April after investigations identified structural defects centring on missing wall ties. The issue meant that alternative arrangements had to be put in place for 7,600 pupils and 740 nursery students.

Three of the closed schools are expected to reopen next week, once they have been declared safe, with another five set to reopen in June and a further nine after the summer holidays.

The news comes after a report on the schools was put before member’s of the council’s corporate policy and strategy committee, which updated officials on the situation and set forward plans for an inquiry.

The report said: "Early indications are that this remains a construction quality matter as opposed to one relating to a design defect or the operating model employed."

Council leader Andrew Burns said: "It is important that we have an independent chair for this inquiry - one who commands respect within the construction industry. The terms of reference will be thorough and we want the report to get to the heart of this issue and see what lessons can be learnt, not just here in Edinburgh, but across Scotland.

"When the issue came to light, our first priority was safety of pupils and staff, the second was getting pupils back into education, the third is getting the schools reopened, and it is not until this has happened that the inquiry will begin.

"Naturally, we want the report to come back as quickly as possible and I would expect it to be complete in a matter of months. We want and deserve answers as to how this has happened - as do parents across the city."