22 | CLEANING | SCHOOL FACILITIES Read more click here E
ducational establishments have a duty of care to their pupils, students and staff that reaches far beyond
the provision of teaching and training. From prep schools to boarding schools, and all permutations in between, pupils and students can only learn effectively if they are in a place that also enhances their wellbeing. This means that learning environments have to be safe, warm and hygienically clean, so the management and on-going maintenance of educational facilities is of paramount importance. Like many other sectors, education has
been subject to changes and financial pressures in recent years. Debates over tuition fees and the emergence of academies and free schools are just two of the biggest issues. As the ‘age of austerity’ continues, those that manage independent educational facilities must strive to secure the highest quality support services that also deliver the best value for money. The Independent Schools’ Bursars
Association (ISBA) is one of the sector’s leading organisations and it supports the professional development of the people that play a key role in managing schools. Not surprisingly, its course ‘So You Want to be a Bursar?’ highlights premises and estates management as a key responsibility. It is also interesting and encouraging to see that one of the themes of its recent annual conference, which took place in May, was sustainability. This is a subject that is having a significant effect on the education sector – whether state or private. However, clever cleaning regimes can make a valuable contribution to reducing the impact the activities of independent schools have on the wider environment.
ABOVE & TOP: Portsmouth Uni, an academic environment with similar cleaning challenges to schools, places particular emphasis on cleaning without chemicals
Lessons in procurement
Keeping a school clean is a high priority, as is finding the right cleaning contractors to do the job, says Carl Robinson
Minimising disruption Independent schools are busy places, in and out of normal hours. Thanks to the wealth of space and facilities on offer, they have become hubs for the wider community. ‘The impact of independent schools on the British economy’, a report prepared for the Independent Schools Council (ISC) that was published in April 2014, highlights the contribution independent schools make to the publicly funded education system and society. This includes collaborating extensively with state schools, free schools and academies; contributing to local service provision; and undertaking projects to support the renewal and regeneration of their local areas. This means that any cleaning regime needs to be thorough
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