Maintenance of School Premises: Health and Safety Duties
Maintenance of school premises: health and safety duties
Essential school maintenance a guide for schools
Health and Safety at Work Act1974
The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 places overall responsibility for health and safety with the employer.
The Act says that a duty of employers to their employees is:
... the provision and maintenance of a working environment for his employees that is, so far as is reasonably practicable, safe, without risks to health, and adequate as regards facilities and arrangements for their welfare at work.
Employers must assess the risks of all activities, introduce measures to control the risks, and tell their employees about the measures.
The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 places overall responsibility for health and safety with the employer
What does this mean for schools?
In January 2016, the Education Funding Agency (EFA) published an essential guide to maintenance for schools. Page 10 notes:
Maintenance plays an important part in complying with health and safety law. The duties include:
- Safe provision and maintenance of plant and systems of work associated with them
- Provision of information, instruction, training and supervision to ensure the health and safety at work of employees
- Maintenance of a safe place of work including access, egress and a safe working environment
Who is the employer in my school?
- For community schools, community special schools, voluntary controlled schools, maintained nursery schools, and maintained pupil referral units, the employer is the local authority (LA)
- For foundation schools, foundation special schools, and voluntary aided schools, the employer is usually the governing body
- For academies, including free schools, the employer is the academy trust
- Premises inspection guidance
- We asked the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) how the statutory duty outlined above can be met. A representative advisedthat it is good practice to carry out premises inspections.
- She suggested that the frequency of inspection depends upon the level of risk, and said that you should contact your LA for guidance about best practice.
The frequency of inspection depends upon the level of risk
Below is a list of factors that you might consider when managing your premises inspections. However, it is by no means an exhaustive list.
Each school will have different requirements depending on its size and facilities. Contact your LA for guidance that will best suit the needs of your school.
Workplace safety inspections
Wiltshire Council offers its schools information onpremises inspections, including a compliance checklist. The checklist, which begins on page 5 of the document, suggests that the mainareaslikely to be covered by a non-specialist inspection are:
- External areas and play equipment
- Vehicles on site
- Evacuation
- Building issues
- Temperature and ventilation
- Lighting
- Electricity
- Welfare provision
- First aid and medical provision
- Working at height
- Workshops
- Laboratories
The guidance says that schools should carry out an inspection once a term.
Management of asbestos
The duty to manage asbestos is included in the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012.
Itrequires site managers for non-domestic premises to prepare a plan (following a site inspection)that sets out in detail how they are going to manage the risk of asbestos. The plan needs to be put into action and regularly reviewed and monitored.
The HSE recommends that the time between inspections will depend on the type of material, where it is and its condition, but that it should be inspected at least every six to 12 months.
- Duty to Manage Asbestos HSA
Managing Asbestos - brief guide
Maintenance of electrical equipment
Inspection ... of equipment is an essential part of any preventative maintenance programme
Portable appliance testing (PAT) is not a legal requirement. However, it may be a way of demonstrating that you are maintaining electrical appliances and therefore complying with the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 and the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.
There are no legal requirements for the frequency of testing portable electrical appliances. HSE guidance on the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 says "inspection and, where necessary, testing of equipment is an essential part of any preventative maintenance programme", but it does not specify how often this testing should take place.
Electricity at work guidance
Fire safety
Guidance from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) recommends that the following fire safety checks should be made in educational settings.
Daily checks
- Remove bolts, padlocks and security devices from fire exits
- Ensure that doors on escape routes swing freely and close fully
- Check escape routes to ensure they are clear from obstructions and combustible materials and in a good state of repair
- Open all final exit doors to the full extent and walk exterior escape routes
- Check the fire alarm panel to ensure the system is active and fully operational
- Where practicable, visually check that emergency lighting units are in good repair and apparently working
- Check that all safety signs and notices are legible
Weekly tests and checks
- Test fire detection and warning systems and manually operated warning devices
- Check the batteries of safety torches
- Check that fire extinguishers and hose reels are correctly located and in apparent working order
Monthly tests and checks
- Test all emergency lighting systems and safety torches
- Check that all fire doors are in good working order and closing correctly, and that the frames and seals are intact
Six-monthly tests and checks
- A competent person should test and maintain the fire-detection and warning system
Annual tests and checks
- The emergency lighting and all fire fighting equipment, fire alarms and other installed sprinkler and smoke control systems should be tested and maintained by a competent person
- All structural fire protection and elements of fire compartmentation should be inspected and any remedial action carried out
Fire Risk Assessment - Education
OTHER USEFUL LINKS
Health and Safety Authority
Risk Assessment
The Education (School Premises) Regulations 1999