Schools, safe and secure…
If your school/college has problems with unauthorised visitors out of hours, vandalism, arson and theft of valuable equipment then KeyPlus Patrol & Response has a cost effective solution for you.
According to Zurich, a major provider of insurance to schools. Fires and arson attacks on schools amounted to a staggering £53 million in 2007.
High-tech teaching practices usually requires expensive equipment, which can often be targeted by thieves. Incidents of vandalism and arson reduce the effectiveness of teaching and often disrupts the curriculum.
Our security services range from Key Holding and Alarm Response to Mobile Patrols including Locks and Unlocks. We can integrate the services mentioned here from a basic cover package to school holiday cover and then for more troubled schools, a more comprehensive package.
For your free security survey – contact us today on 0800 783 1025
East Lancashire school raiders strike again
Another school in East Lancashire has been hit by thieves in the run-up to Christmas. West Craven High Technology College, in Barnoldswick, is the latest to be targeted by burglars, with more than £4,800 worth of equipment stolen. Last week, Blessed Trinity College in Burnley was targeted while the school was closed because of the recent cold snap.
West Craven deputy head Roy Barnes said:
“This incident is shocking and very frustrating. We do all we can to protect ourselves from theft so to find out that the college had been hit was annoying to say the least. The equipment that was stolen is vital in our programmes here at West Craven but we will make sure the students’ work will not be affected.”
Police believe three men smashed their way into the school before stealing computers, laptops, monitors, a projector, and digital cameras. It is thought the raid happened between 5.30pm on December 5 and 9.25am on December 6.
Blessed Trinity RC College – Deputy head Philip Matterson
Burglars smashed their way into a school closed by the snow, helped themselves to £40,000 of electrical equipment, and vandalised classrooms. Thieves stole top of the range computers and cameras as they raided the empty classrooms of Blessed Trinity RC College during December. It is estimated that 25 laptops and around 20 digital cameras were stolen in the raid. Lesson plans and teacher’s study notes were also taken in the burglary that took place in broad daylight.
Father Brian Kealey, the chair of governors at the school, said:
“Not for the first time Blessed Trinity has been targeted. The thieves have not just damaged the building but the future of our children. Though much as the school will manage with this loss, we should not need to because of the action of these thieves.”
It is suspected that the culprits disabled the alarm system by slicing wires after a forced entry. The thieves targeted the technology block and IT offices to steal of the most expensive equipment. The burglary is massive setback for Blessed Trinity which was given a promising Ofsted report earlier this year.
Assistant headteacher Phil Thompson, said:
“It was an awful feeling for the staff and pupils to return to school to find so many things gone. The equipment that was taken included laptops, digital cameras and other expensive equipment, which will be very hard to replace. We’ve had to close the classrooms that suffered the most damage so that the police can gather evidence. We can assure people that the children’s education will not be hindered by the recent events and that the morale of the staff has not been affected.”
This is the second time in three months Blessed Trinity College has been broken into. A former heroin addict stole two projectors and a laptop in September, worth a total of £1,200
Are you in charge of schools security?
Are you in charge of schools security for a local authority, or perhaps the director of security and facilities at a university? If so, it may well be the case that you’re having to look at fresh solutions that will help maintain the security and safety of pupils and staff alike.
Please visit the Info 4 Security website for full details
Running on Thursday 5 March at The Jury’s Inn Hotel in central Birmingham, ‘Securing Educational Establishments’ is supported by SMT Online, info4security, IFSEC 2009 and Security Installer magazine, and combines a series of first class presentations from the education and security sectors’ foremost professionals, a Panel Discussion on CCTV and detailed Case Studies. The overriding aim is to help security professionals develop cost-effective systems and management regimes that will maximise protection.
Identifying the emerging risks
Following the opening remarks by Brian Sims, conference chairman and editor of SMT Online, the first speaker of the day is DCI Chris Philips. Head of the National Counter-Terrorism Security Office, Chris will examine how security managers might effectively tackle today’s threats and identify the emerging risks.
How might we manage the increasing and horrific presence of knife crime in society? Obviously, preventative tactics must be employed. We’ve seen the metal arches used by the British Transport Police on the London Underground, of course, but should they become compulsory in schools?
It’s sad that we should even have to contemplate this, but this huge problem must be addressed. Too many children are losing their lives because of the knife epidemic.
