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Ventilation spend linked to students’ learning outcomes
Matthew Maleki, CIAT’s high rise residential and hospitality business development manager, explores the impact of poor ventilation on pupils and explains why schools should prioritise indoor air quality (IAQ)
A
s school budgets are squeezed, some educational establishments have decided to cut ventilation budgets to save money. However, deprioritising good ventilation
could potentially be aff ecting students’ learning outcomes, health and overall wellbeing. A recent survey by the public service union UNISON, which represents teachers, has revealed there has been a signifi cant drop-off in good ventilation practices in schools since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot of attention has focussed on outdoor air quality and pollution in recent years – even though we spend more than 90 per cent of our time inside and an estimated 3.2 million people die prematurely due to indoor air pollution each year, according to WHO. Eff ective school ventilation helps provide a safe,
Left: Matt Maleki, Residential and Hospitality Business Development Manager UK&I, Carrier
Forty-two per cent of respondents said the school was concerned about energy costs, while nearly half said the change was because the school no longer thought COVID was an issue.
Airborne contaminants can cause health problems
comfortable and healthy indoor environment for students and staff . However, the UNISON survey revealed that only 26 per cent of schools actively monitor carbon dioxide levels in classrooms, just 16 per cent of respondents said their school ensured good ventilation, and 46 percent said schools were being ventilated much less than the year before.
UNISON is concerned that reduced ventilation is increasing the risk of illness and absences in schools, and poses a particular risk to immunosuppressed students and staff who are especially vulnerable to infection. Eff ective ventilation can remove airborne pathogens, helping to prevent illnesses circulating within the school premises and improving air quality.
Other airborne contaminants that can potentially
cause health problems are volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are emitted from certain types of liquids or building materials in the form of a gas. Indoor areas can experience
higher concentrations of pollutants such as VOCs, semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs), radon, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide. Common short-term symptoms
as a result of exposure to airborne contaminants such as VOCs include headaches, dizziness, sickness and irritated airways. Health charity Asthma + Lung UK
has even linked poor indoor air quality to the increased incidence of asthma, lung cancer and increased risk of heart attack and strokes. Students are more vulnerable than adults to poor indoor air quality (IAQ) as they breathe in more air per unit weight and are more sensitive to
Above: CIAT Vectios Power air-to-air rooftop units
12 September 2023
heat, cold and moisture – so poor ventilation conditions may aff ect proper development.
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