No material so aptly sums up the condition of modern Britain as reinforced aerated autoclaved concrete (or Raac). By setting steel bars into foamed concrete, builders in the second half of the 20th century could create panels that were light, well insulated, fire resistant and (most importantly) cheap. It was a key material of Britain’s postwar recovery, in which the new schools, hospitals, leisure centres and town halls of the growing welfare state were erected at speed.
A landscape of boxy, modern buildings arose – a new Britain, built on innovative, new materials – but the Raac contained a secret: because its bubbled structure is porous, the steel within can rust unseen. Without reinforcement, the aerated concrete has very little tensile strength of its own. It can give way without warning. Our public realm is disintegrating.
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