SCHOOL buildings are in increasing danger of collapsing onto children and staff after years of cuts to government investment.

Leaked internal documents sent from the Department for Education (DfE) to Downing Street say the threat of an incident posing “risk to life” has increased from “likely” to “very likely.”

The information, sent in the last six weeks, includes warnings of two school buildings in imminent danger.

Cuts in government spending on school building repairs were imposed by education secretary Michael Gove when the Tories took power in 2010 with the support of their Liberal Democrat collaborators.

The documents reveal a continuing battle with the Treasury since then for increased funding as school buildings deteriorated, increasing the risk of collapses.

In the most recent emails, DfE officials call on the Treasury to make extra billions of pounds available “as a matter of urgency” for school rebuilding projects.

NASUWT deputy general secretary Jane Peckham said: “If there are school buildings judged to be ‘very likely’ at risk of collapse or that may pose a serious risk to the safety of pupils and staff, then this needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency before an avoidable tragedy occurs.”

She blamed “years of underinvestment by government” and demanded that the DfE identify which buildings were most at risk.

NEU joint general secretary Kevin Courtney said: “The government has known for some time now that the state of disrepair in some schools is ‘a risk to life.’

“Parents might reasonably have trusted government to ensure safe environments for their children, but that belief is now shattered. 

“We must urgently know which schools are most at risk, whether the leaders of those schools have been informed and what timescale is in place to put right this situation.”

He said that investment in schools had halved since 2010. 

Labour shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “This Conservative government is risking its most basic duty: to keep our children safe from harm.”

The DfE claimed that the safety of pupils and staff was paramount, adding that a comprehensive survey of school building conditions was under way to assess and manage risk.

More than £13 billion has been allocated since 2015 to maintain and improve school facilities across England, the department said.