A Locksmith’s Guide On How CCTV Systems Make Your School Safer
In any school setting, security mustn’t be seen as an afterthought. Parents put their faith in your school to keep their children well-educated and safe. Staff come to work expecting to play their part in educating the next generation without being put at risk. Balancing that out can be tough, though. As an expert locksmith […]
In any school setting, security mustn’t be seen as an afterthought. Parents put their faith in your school to keep their children well-educated and safe. Staff come to work expecting to play their part in educating the next generation without being put at risk.
Balancing that out can be tough, though. As an expert locksmith in Doncaster, I regularly get asked by schools what we think the most important security systems are. Budgets aren’t unlimited, especially in an era where council cuts feel like the norm as opposed to the exception.
So, what are the most important school security systems to invest in? What provides the best bang for buck returns on investment? Our advice would be to focus on closed-circuit television (CCTV). Why?
The Key Benefits Of CCTV Cameras For Schools
Over the years, CCTV systems have arguably provided the best return for a school with limited security investment. There are quite a few reasons, so let’s explore what we’ve found.
Keeping Students & Staff Safe
The first and most important benefit is that students and staff will feel safer. Knowing that 24/7 footage is being recorded gives people peace of mind.
CCTV cameras in schools provide a notable deterrent to students and vandals. They also give people confidence knowing that, if something does happen to them when on school grounds, there will be HD recorded footage of the incident.
Nobody should come into a school and feel like they are likely to be attacked or put at risk. CCTV will give everyone a bit of extra confidence that their incident is always being recorded.
Ensuring Access Is Moderated
If you were to pair a CCTV system with keyless access control systems, your school would become safer from unwanted guests. People can sneak into schools in all manner of ways, right?
Well, with CCTV systems and monitoring systems paired with access control devices, getting into the school without permission becomes much more challenging. Now, only people with the correct ID or credentials can get into the school grounds. That means no more rampaging outside visitors, no more angry parents storming into the facility, and no more potential for easy access for thieves and vandals.
Beating The Bullies
One of the most important benefits we can think of is that bullying is less likely to take place on school grounds. While online and social media-led bullying can still take place, at least the risk of students or staff being bullied within the school is reduced.
As a school, you can only control what goes on inside your facilities. By having CCTV systems, you make bullies far less confident that they can act how they please without visual proof of their bullying. That alone can be enough to stop bullying in the school. It might not change their behaviour, but at the very least, it makes them less likely to act out at school.
Being able to get on top of antisocial and bullying behaviour is essential. Bullying can be hard to prove, so having visual evidence of these situations taking place is highly effective as a deterrent. If bullies know they are likely to be caught red-handed, they are far less likely to act out.
Reducing The Risk Of Vandalism
Vandals who target schools tend to do so when they feel like there is no risk of being caught. CCTV cameras immediately put people off using your school as a target for their defacement campaigns.
Why? Well, they know they are more likely to be seen. So long as your CCTV systems have no blind spots, people know they can’t start graffitiing the school, smashing windows/or damaging school equipment. They immediately know that if they do commit such an act, they’ll be caught.
That kind of deterrent alone can make it much easier to reduce the risk of vandalism in your school.
Minimising The Threat Of Theft
The same applies to stealing, too. Anyone on school grounds is less likely to commit a theft if they know there is a high-definition recording of their actions!
CCTV is great for making theft far less likely. While you might still get the odd daredevil willing to risk being caught to steal something, they are few and far between. With CCTV, you always know that you have visual proof you can use as evidence of someone’s crimes.
This also comes down to ensuring people’s valuable belongings feel safe. With CCTV present, people are less likely to steal from classrooms, stockrooms, or even student lockers.
Providing Additional Evidence
When an incident breaks out in your school, evidence can sometimes be scant. That can often leave you with a “they-said-we-said” situation where you have to choose which party to believe.
That’s never a good place to be in, which is why CCTV systems are so important. They can provide the extra layer of evidence needed to make a decision. In the event of a theft or vandalism incident, you now have visual proof of the problem taking place. Without that evidence, you would be left to go on eyewitness accounts and hearsay. Video evidence is, for the most part, irrefutable.
CCTV systems improve accountability and make it easier to get to the bottom of negative situations. You would be surprised at how easy it is to find a suitable resolution when you have video footage to use as a guideline.
Legal Peace Of Mind
Schools never want to find themselves legally accountable, and having CCTV systems can help limit responsibility. For example, if a student’s bag goes missing, a parent may hold the school responsible for a lack of security. If you have CCTV, it’s easier to argue in good faith that you have put in place systems that protect students, staff, and personal property.
Improving Emergency Response Quality
Another benefit of having CCTV systems in place is that your faculty can review how school staff and students respond to an incident. Take, for example, lining up for assembly in the morning. Is it too chaotic? With CCTV, you can get a clearer view of how the situation unfolds and how to improve it.
The same goes for things like emergency response. Fire drills: are there any potential concerns that might go unnoticed? CCTV can give you an extra idea of how these fire exits unfold and what could be done to make the process safer and more streamlined.
Quicker Response Times For Emergency Situations
Lastly, an oft-ignored benefit of school CCTV systems is the ability to respond in real time to incidents. From an emergency like a medical episode or a fire to a fight breaking out, CCTV gives everyone on the school faculty the chance to react quickly.
Fast response times can be the difference between stopping a fight or a fire spreading. Or getting someone the medical attention they need before it’s too late. Schools need to respond quickly to incidents that could put staff or students at risk of harm, and CCTV systems provide an extra set of eyes and ears. When paired with alarm systems, response times improve even further.
It also means that emergencies such as potential break-ins, burglaries, or theft can be dealt with quickly.
If your school needs to bolster security, consider investing in CCTV. In connection with other systems, such as alarm systems and access control devices at entrances, you can immediately make your school a safer place for everyone.
Reduce the risk of vandalism, theft, student absences, bullying/antisocial behaviour, and more, with CCTV. As an investment, this can be a real difference-maker in ensuring your school remains a desirable place for students to study and staff to work.