Three buildings on the National Police Scotland estate have been found to contain a dangerous type of structural concrete.
Police Scotland carried out a review of 65 of its buildings after discovering reinforced autoclave sealed concrete (RAAC) on the roof of a car garage in Edinburgh, and identified two other sites that may need repair work.
The concrete has been the subject of a UK government report that buildings containing it “could collapse”.
RAAC was widely used in the years after World War II, but it is weaker than traditional concrete and was designed to have a service life of only 30 years.
A Police Scotland spokesman said the concrete was found during maintenance work being carried out on the roof of the Fettes garage workshops in Edinburgh, then during the inspection of the estate in a boiler room external to Perth Police Station and two blocks away at Baluniefield Police Station in Dundee.
They added: “The safety of officers and staff, and those who attend our buildings, is an absolute priority and we quickly began working with a team of experts to assess other sites that may be affected, in line with updated guidelines issued by the Institute of Structural Engineers.
“Staff in affected areas have been informed and alternative working arrangements have been made where necessary while structural engineers carry out further assessment and repair work.”
A school in Prestonpans, East Lothian, was partially closed last month after RAAC was found in the building. It has since been reported that more than 20 rooms could be closed for months.
The UK Ministry of Justice recently said the material may be present in six court buildings, while the Ministry of Defense is investigating barracks and training facilities it fears may also be at risk.
Earlier this year, six education unions wrote an open letter to the UK government calling for urgent action on schools at risk of collapse, following an earlier warning from the Department for Education that the prospect of a collapse of a school built after the war was “very likely”.
It has also been identified around 34 English hospitals that have the material present on their roofs. Five of them were recently given priority status in Whitehall’s new hospitals programme.
