Virtual Guard solution enhances protection whilst reducing costs
Foreland Fields School is a special education school based in Ramsgate, Kent, with some 220 pupils who have profound, severe and complex needs. It has recently again won a Gold Award as one of UNICEF UK’s Rights Respecting Schools. However, the school has suffered repeatedly from trespassers who have caused a range of vandalism, including graffiti and intruders climbing onto the roof, causing damage to the building. This has led to significant extra expenses as well as upsetting both staff and pupils.
The school had previously installed a range of security measures. These included a CCTV system on site, which recorded any incidents that took place. There was also an intruder alarm system for the school. An additional security headache was a new building, the Hive pavilion, located by the sports fields. This also needed to be protected, whilst providing a degree of flexibility, as external users would be paying for the use of the pavilion and the sports pitches. The school initially invested heavily in an expensive security guard patrol to deal with the repeated issue of trespassers.
The search for a more cost-effective approach
As a result, the security costs soon started to become unsustainable. The school therefore began searching for a more affordable yet more effective solution, primarily using the KCS framework. This offers a range of procurement services for schools, enabling them to find compliant suppliers when purchasing goods or services. Various companies were approached and the different solutions were all compared on merit.
The chosen solution was from security specialist SECOM, which is part of the CCTV access element of the KCS framework. Jeremy Edwards, Deputy Head Teacher, explains: “Our aim was to find a reliable and more cost-effective method of dissuading trespass and reducing damage. We chose SECOM because they’re a large, professional company with years of experience and expertise and they offered a good selection of products, which enabled us to find a suitable solution. We were also happy with the projected costs involved.”
Steve Kench-Cannon, SECOM’s Regional Sales Executive, visited the school to see the extent of the problems they were encountering. As a result, SECOM offered a few possible solutions and the school opted for the security company’s Virtual Guard system.
Developing the new deterrent
The company subsequently took over the school’s existing CCTV system and upgraded the external cameras so that they could integrate with the Virtual Guard solution. This provides 24-hour monitoring by SECOM’s Alarm Receiving Centre (ARC). The upgrade included the installation of eight further external cameras to give better coverage of the site, along with a network of loudspeakers. It also involved the introduction of a three-phase response to any alerts, with the aim of deterring any would-be intruders. The school is able to set and reset this system.
The first phase in the Virtual Guard response is to provide an automatic message that triggers a warning over the loudspeakers if the cameras detect any unexpected activity. If this doesn’t help to deter potential intruders, the second phase involves SECOM’s operatives logging into the camera and speaker system and issuing a verbal challenge. This ensures that the intruders will know that they’re being watched by real people. If this step isn’t effective, the final phase would involve a security guard being sent to the site.
Meanwhile, SECOM also took over the responsibility for maintaining and monitoring the intruder alarm system. Any alerts raised by this system or the CCTV cameras are immediately sent to the ARC.
The installation of the new system took place during the summer holidays. SECOM needed to liaise with the school’s IT department for one specific aspect of the work, as the Hive is a separate building, connected to the main school via a fibre network link. The installation was successful and was completed on time and on budget.
Although SECOM hadn’t previously worked with Foreland Fields, the company soon developed a close relationship with the school. Steve Kench-Cannon explains: “We wanted to ensure that the whole system worked as effectively as possible. I therefore spent time visiting the school and showing them the plans and how the system would work and answering any questions. This meant that they were able to fully understand how it operates.”
A successful outcome
Since the system has been installed, there have been one or two occasions on which Phase 1 of the deterrent process has been activated. However, no further action has been needed as this has been sufficient to prevent the potential intruders from trying to access the site.
Foreland Fields School are really happy with the way the system is working. Jeremy Edwards reports: “The system is clearly acting as a deterrent and is easy to use. It’s much more effective than the previous security solution and is already saving the school tens of thousands of pounds a year. The new system has given the school the high standard of protection it needed and we’re very pleased with how it works.”
Following the success of the Virtual Guard solution, Foreland Fields School has decided to add a further two cameras. The school is also currently in the early stages of exploring the possibility of installing further SECOM solutions as and when these will be required.
