Bedfordshire & Luton Fire & Rescue Service Using BB100 Reducing Arson Across Schools Thomas Warner, Area Community Safety Officer (Arson)
Building Bulletin 100 Published Sept 2007. This Building Bulletin on design for fire safety in schools gives comprehensive guidance on the life safety requirements to comply with Part B of the Building Regulations. It also describes appropriate strategies to reduce the risk from fires and recommends property protection measures that go beyond the life safety requirements of the Building Regulations.
Jim Knight, MP Minister for Schools March 2007: Stated that it is now our expectation that all new schools will have sprinklers fitted. He went on to say that it includes those schools undergoing major refurbishment and schools using public funds will have to complete a risk assessment and cost benefit analysis exercise to help decide whether they should be fitted with sprinklers. In effect, the Government s expectation is that in the majority of cases this will lead to the installation of sprinklers.
The Position in Bedfordshire School Fires Per Million Population: source BB100 80 70 fires per million population 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 51 53 Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Services
Solutions Applied Use BB100 and agree Memorandum of Understanding with Local Authorities; Seminars for Head Teachers and School Governors; Site Agent Training; Fire Risk Assessment Courses for Head Teachers; Theatre in Education; The School Crime & Arson Risk Evaluation (SCARE) Project.
Using BB100 We worked with our partners to run the BB100 Risk Assessment toolkit on all Bedfordshire Schools; Individual results sent to schools; Results used to target the SCARE project; Memorandum of Understanding developed.
Schools Assessed Data from 252 school across Bedfordshire and Luton: Upper schools; Middle schools; Lower schools; High schools; Primary school; Special schools; Independent and faith schools.
Results Bedford Borough Council Central Bedfordshire Council Luton Borough Council High Average Low Total number of schools assessed 18 59 2 79 42 90 0 132 31 10 0 41 TOTAL 91 159 2 252 % of Total 36% 63% 1%
An Average School Overall scoring Incidences of fire / Environment & Buildings Fire Safety protection /consequences and impact 93 35 58 Average risk 41 100 Average risk 21 60 High risk 51 145
Memorandum of Understanding First MOU was between Bedfordshire & Luton Fire and Rescue Service and Bedfordshire Police was signed in 2009. It committed both partners to the SCARE project for one year; Second MOU 2010 continued the SCARE project and incorporated commitments from the local Authorities.
Memorandum of Understanding Commits local authorities to: To support the installation of sprinklers in new schools; To support when it is viable to do so the installation of sprinklers in schools where significant refurbishments leading to material alterations are being planned and where the risk is significant.
Seminars for Head Teachers The national and local schools fire safety agenda; Sprinklers myths and reality; Design freedoms; Resilience and sustainability Moral duty (e.g. Environmental issues); Cost effective - FRS expertise for Fire Safety in schools. In essence: Refurbishment / new build think sprinklers!!
Fire Risk Assessment Training for Head Teachers 2 Days; Fire safety history; Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005; HM Government fire safety risk assessment guides; Fire Safety Risk Assessment; Risk assessment practical exercises.
Site Agent Training Site Agents are often responsible for the practical implementation of school fire safety procedures and tests. Training covers: Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005; Waste Management; Weekly and monthly tests.
Theatre in Education Arson About; Theatre in Education in partnership with Biddenham Upper School.
Arson and Crime in Schools a Joint Approach School Crime & Arson Risk Evaluations
SCARE Joint Police and Fire Service evaluation of the school premises; Agreed Memorandum of Understanding; We aim to complete 60 SCARE visits during an academic year; Where possible we conduct SCARE visits it in conjunction with the schools Fire Safety Audit We aim to provide cost effective advice and guidance to reduce the likelihood of a school suffering an arson attack or other criminal damage; We will highlight good practice when it is already in existence;
SCARE: Common issues Wheelie bins; Letter boxes; Perimeter security; Litter bins; Covered play areas with combustible toys.
The Results 75% reduction in school fires since 2003 70 60 50 40 30 small fires deliberate fires accidental fires 20 10 0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
The Results Agreement reached with Local Authorities for 11 schools to be fitted with sprinklers; Architects asking for BB100 toolkit results; Closer working with Local Authority Health and Safety teams; Bedfordshire & Luton Fire & Rescue Service awarded the Association of Building Engineers Fire Safety Award 2010 ; Finalists for the Partnership Award at the 2010 IOSH Awards.
Bedfordshire & Luton Fire & Rescue Service Thank you for your time. Thomas Warner Area Community Safety Officer (Arson) thomas.warner@bedsfire.com Phone: 01234 845000 Mobile: 07768 560479