A third school roof fire linked to solar panels has raised urgent safety concerns.
The blaze broke out at Sidegate Primary School in Ipswich on June 24, while more than 650 pupils and more than 100 staff were on site, forcing a full evacuation.
The National Education Union (NEU) has raised "serious concern" following the incident, which is thought to have started in the building’s solar panel system.
Wendy James, joint branch secretary of the NEU in Suffolk, said: "We have been raising these concerns for months.
"The pattern of incidents was clear, and the risks were both foreseeable and preventable.
"It is deeply troubling that no decisive action was taken until after a third fire occurred in a fully occupied school."
Smoke plumed from the school (Image: Contributed)
READ MORE: Children released after Ipswich school fire
The NEU had previously alerted Suffolk County Council to the dangers after two earlier fires believed to be linked to solar panels.
These occurred at East Bergholt Primary School on August 4, 2025, and Brooklands Primary School on March 30, 2026.
A fire at The Beeches Primary School on September 3, 2024, was also reportedly caused by solar panels.
The blaze at East Bergholt Primary was formally attributed to defective solar panels.
Following the Sidegate Lane Primary School incident, Suffolk County Council announced that solar panels installed during its 2011-2016 programme would be temporarily switched off across affected schools, some 80 in total, while investigations continue.
READ MORE: Ipswich news
Paul McLaughlin, regional secretary of the NEU, said: "This was a near miss of the most serious kind.
"Hundreds of children and staff were put at immediate risk in a situation that could so easily have resulted in significant injury or loss of life.
"School communities must have absolute confidence that their buildings are safe.
"That confidence has been shaken.
"The focus now must be on ensuring this can never happen again."
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