Fortunately attacks on schools in the United Kingdom are less frequent or as deadly as those in North America. But unwelcome intruders in schools do pose a real threat to students and staff. Whilst the risk is very low, schools must have a procedure in place should terrorists or dangerous individuals access the school grounds.
A school lockdown procedure generally follows the Run, Hide, Tell guidance. In the first instance run to safety. If you can’t run, then hide. And then you should alert the police. But how do the occupants of a school know when a lockdown event has been triggered?
The National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) recommends that every school and college should have a method to warn students and staff that a lockdown event has occurred. This could be through a tannoy announcement, text messages, word of mouth or pop-up messages on computer screens. But the most effective way to trigger a lockdown event is to have a dedicated alarm system with a distinct tone.
Some schools may be deterred from fitting a dedicated lockdown alarm due to the disruption caused and installation costs. However wireless systems, like the Bull SiteProtect Lockdown Alarm, can be fitted quickly and do not require the expensive installation of unsightly trunking.
The SiteProtect Lockdown Alarm’s remote devices can be fitted in each classroom or in convenient locations across the school. Each remote device has a trigger to sound the alarm and an alarm unit. Once a lockdown alarm is triggered, all units would sound the distinct warning. A school or college can have up to 480 units installed, whilst the system can be linked to an auto-dialler to notify up to 50 mobile phones for emergency contacts.
Whilst having a dedicated lockdown alarm is not currently mandatory, Government advice is favouring dedicated alarms. To find out more, contact the team on 01432 806806, or visit /sectors/education/
To find out more, contact the team on 01432 806806