School Maintenance & Building Repairs
Anyone who works in education will know that the good folk at Ofsted can arrive at any time. However, that’s not the case when it comes to your friendly school maintenance and building advisors.
So when should you get your buildings and school estate looked at and is it prudent to do it sooner rather than later?
As with many things, it’s usually better to be forewarned of issues than to discover them when it’s too late. This is why most organisations and professional landlords ensure they have a rolling programme of planned maintenance and repair. It’s estimated that around 20-40% can be saved by planning ahead and keeping estates maintained.
A complete failure of a building that has been poorly maintained could be incredibly disruptive to the life of the school and the provision of education. To avoid such a failure is not just beneficial in pure financial terms, but in terms of students’ learning and futures.
Even at a conservative estimate, 20% of anyone’s precious budget is probably worth hanging onto. So what should you be doing? And when?
When
The ‘when’ question is relatively easy to answer. If you’re not already doing it, then now is the time to plan and implement a maintenance programme. This article is being drafted in the summer. The thought of a relaxing summer break is attractive. But now, while the buildings are relatively empty, is an ideal time to come in and check for issues.
Take the opportunity to have a specialist or specialists help. They should identify any equipment, plumbing, electrical, heating, etc that might need replacing or repairing. A surveyor should prepare a graded programme of works. They’ll identify those items which are urgent and those which can be added to a programme for later in the year.
Armed with the knowledge of what needs doing on your school maintenance programme, you can then head off for that well-earned break. You should be able to relax in the knowledge that everything’s under control.
What
Fortunately, the government have done the hard work for us here. This guide from DfE gives some great starting points. In particular, refer to the section on building structure and fabric. It refers to some of the well-known risks, such as RAAC and asbestos, but also some of the easily overlooked points such as drainage and glazing.
We also have a guide which gives some tips on the key things to bear in mind when planning school projects. It also give some pointers for best practice when working with external professionals in the education sector.
Finally, as always, if there is anything we or any of the team can help with, don’t hesitate to get in touch today. We’ll be happy to help.