How schools can improve security
Throughout the UK, schools are faced with several challenges when it comes to ensuring the school is as safe as possible. Whether the threats come from outside the school or within, there are plenty of ways schools can improve their security and in turn add to the trust levels between the school and the parents of the students. If your school is secure, it allows parents to rest at ease knowing their children are safe and encourages better morale amongst the staff and the students themselves, letting them focus on their studies. so here is a list we’ve compiled on how schools can improve security.
Survey the school grounds for security improvements
Doing an extensive survey of the school grounds is absolutely essential if you want to make sure your school is as secure as possible. Installing or upgrading your school gates is a great place to start, as secure school gates will prevent trespassers from entering the grounds while keeping your students within the grounds during school hours. Elsewhere it’s a good idea to check your perimeter, are there holes in your security fences or places where the fences have become less secure? You may even want to consider cameras and extra lighting, particularly if there are areas of your school grounds which are dimly lit.
Form a team
When an emergency occurs, you’re going to want to make sure that you’re fully prepared. This means you have to respond swiftly and properly. Forming a team out of your current members of staff will go a long way to preparing the school for emergency situations. It’s important that every member of the team knows their role and what’s expected of them should an emergency occur. Schools with a quick and professional emergency response mechanism in place have a much better chance when it comes to containing an emergency and making sure that the situation doesn’t escalate.
Have a good communication system in place
Good communication is a great weapon when it comes to crisis situations in schools. It’s a good idea to give essential staff members two-way radio systems. There are also a number of apps that can assist with security, so you could also equip your staff members’ smartphones to help them with their security efforts.
Practice your plan
When it comes to security, you can never be too careful, that’s why you should have a clear policy in place so everybody knows what kind of behaviour is acceptable and what behaviour isn’t. A properly trained faculty and staff, who know exactly what behaviour is inappropriate, will know when to act and how to diffuse any situations that could potentially turn violent. Parents can also help out with security issues, so try and promote parent participation and outline any procedures you have for dealing with a crisis. When it comes to those procedures, regular practice will help and ensure that everyone is fully up to speed with the school’s policy.
Improving student relationships
One of the best ways to help with security is to improve the relationships between students. This can help seriously combat violence and will show the students that you care about their wellbeing. If students feel invisible, it has been proven that they will push the limits when it comes to trying to attract attention, even if that attention is negative, so it’s a good idea to promote inclusion wherever possible and encourage connectedness between students. If a student knows that you care about them, they are more likely to succeed, and happy students are far less likely to pose a security risk.
Remember that getting the balance right between making your students feel secure while not making the school feel like a jail is important, and by making a few simple improvements or changes to your policy, you could go a long way towards encouraging added security. Changing aspects such as the school gates is a good example of a small change that could make a big difference, and will help you make strides towards having the safe, secure and successful school that everyone wants.
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