House of Commons - Education and Skills

Select Committee on Education and Skills Written Evidence

Further memorandum submitted by Zurich Municipal

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Zurich Municipal welcomes the opportunity to submit an additional memorandum to the Education and Skills Committee Inquiry into Sustainable Schools. This document contains additional information and statistics on school fires caused by arson, the number of daytime fires, the total cost of school fires, the benefits of sprinklers and Zurich Municipal's design guide for schools. It is in addition to the original memorandum submitted in June.

1.2 Zurich Municipal is the UK's leading education insurer and risk management provider, giving us a unique insight into the sector, and the sustainability issues it faces. We have extensive experience of some of the key risk-management issues facing schools, particularly in relation to fire safety and tackling arson, and publish annual figures tracking the number of incidents across the country. We also hold a considerable central database of more than 13,000 schools which looks at the risk ranking of schools.

1.3 Zurich Municipal has a long history of working with local and national education departments and schools to try to combat arson. Recently we've worked with stakeholders to develop a range of educational materials under the Arson Combated Together umbrella, and published a free design guide for schools with the aim of encouraging the use of fire sprinkler systems.

SUMMARY

2.1 In this memorandum, we have provided additional information on:

— The total number of school fires.

— The number of school fires caused by arson.

— The number of daytime fires.

— The total cost of school fires.

— The benefits of sprinklers.

— Zurich Municipal's design guide for schools.

2.2 The current unprecedented level of funding currently made available for school building projects provides an excellent opportunity for the Government to review its policy over the installation of sprinklers.

2.3 As our figures below show, the number of school fires in the UK is unacceptably high, and the high proportion of fires that are the result of a deliberate arson attack raises important questions about how Government, and other stakeholders, can tackle this problem.

2.4 The lack of adequate fire prevention measures in our schools poses a serious safety risk, and the increasing number of school fires taking place during daytime hours increases the risks posed to pupils and staff. The increasing use of schools by the community, by visitors unfamiliar with the layout of the school, is also a potential risk factor that needs to be considered.

2.5 We believe that reducing the number and severity of fires can be achieved by:

— Additional funding and a firm commitment to ensure sprinkler provision in all new schools, and wherever possible, in those undergoing major refurbishment. The mandatory installation of sprinklers in new schools will result in dramatic cost savings for schools across the UK, and minimise the social impact that large school fires have on communities.

Arson Combated Together

(ACT)

TOTAL NUMBER OF SCHOOL FIRES

3.1 The total number of school fires in the UK includes fires of varying degrees, from small fires that are caught early and extinguished, to large fires that destroy whole schools. Despite increasing public awareness of fire safety issues, better security and a reduction in the use of combustible materials in school design, the UK has not seen a marked reduction in the number of school fires.

3.2 The figures below show the total number of reported school fires. However, a 2006 survey of schools, which was commissioned by the Department for Communities and Local Government and undertaken by BMRB,[1] shows that 43% of secondary schools have had a school fire in the last three years, and half of school fires are not reported to the Fire and Rescue Service.

Table 1[2]

	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004
Total Number of Fires	1,821	1,882	1,636	1,372	1,675	1,421	1,719	1,498	1,496	1,512

Graph 1

3.3 The survey also found that:

— Over a quarter (28%) of secondary schools that reported having had a fire said their most recent fire led to a claim for financial assistance being made. The cost of fires varied enormously: six fires resulted in over £1 million worth of damage, although the median cost of fires that caused any damage was £300.

— 72% of secondary school fires said the fire was internal to a school building, rather than on playing fields/car parks etc.

— Nearly 80% of secondary school fires were considered to be suspicious or deliberate.

— 36% of schools said their most recent fire led to the temporary closure of at least one school facility.

SCHOOL FIRES CAUSED BY ARSON

4.1 Schools are prime targets for arson attacks because the perpetrators are often past or present pupils of the school who are familiar with the site, and the level of intruder protection and detection in schools has, traditionally, been low.

4.2 At Zurich Municipal we realise that education of young people is at the heart of the solution. Once pupils understand the impact of their actions, the likelihood of an arson incident is much reduced. For this reason, we have worked with stakeholders to develop a range of educational materials under the Arson Combated Together (ACT) umbrella. ACT is a theatre education programme, aimed at reducing the number of arson attacks in UK schools. We have also recently developed the ACT Fire Service Toolkit, a practical education aid designed to teach children about the danger and risk of arson attacks, provided free of charge to Fire Services around the UK.

4.3 The figures below show that in most cases, school fires occur as a result of arson. However, the true number of arson cases is likely to be far higher than this due to the number of suspected cases that are not categorised as "deliberate". A 2006 survey of schools commissioned by the Department for Communities and Local Government shows that nearly 80% of secondary school fires were considered to be "suspicious" or "deliberate".[3]

Table 2[4]

	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004
Deliberate	1,301	1,239	1,066	856	1,018	882	1,037	849	896	840
Other	520	643	570	516	657	539	682	649	600	672

Graph 2

DAYTIME SCHOOL FIRES

5.1 A particularly worrying trend over recent years is the increasing number of daytime fires in schools. Daytime fires present a far greater risk to the safety of both pupils and staff, and make the role of the Fire and Rescue Service incredibly difficult due to the number of people on a school site at any one time. Since 2002, almost twice as many school fires have taken place during daytime hours compared with night-time hours.[5]

Table 3[6]

	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004
Midnight-5.59 am	177	203	182	161	109	117	138	110	141	78
6.00 am-11.59 am	343	462	334	297	431	372	477	437	414	485
Noon-5.59 pm	610	629	591	497	648	541	619	519	544	554
6.00 pm-11.59 pm	689	589	529	417	488	391	486	432	398	395

Graph 3

5.2 Graph 4 below shows that the proportion of daytime fires has risen relatively steadily over the past 10 years, with 52% of fires taking place during daytime hours in 1995 compared with 69% in 2004. With this trend looking set to continue, it is, only a matter of time before a fatality occurs directly as a result of a school fire.

Graph 4

COST OF SCHOOL FIRES

6.1 The cost of school fires has remained consistently high over recent years, and shows no sign of decreasing. As table 4 below shows, between 2000 and 2005 school fires in the UK cost a total of £472 million.

6.2 Our figures show that school fires cost an estimated £67 million in 2005—a £16 million reduction from the previous year. However, early indications show that this is not the start of a downward trend. In the first six months of this year alone the cost of school fires in the UK reached £52 million.

Table 4[7]

	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005
Total Cost (£ million)	55	55	51	45	42	65	85	96	75	84	67

Graph 5

6.3 However, the financial expense of school fires is only one of the costs associated with school fires. The social costs of a large school fire are far-reaching and can have a long lasting impact on those involved. School fires disrupt pupil's education (particularly during examination periods), destroy coursework and schoolwork, as well as irreplaceable teaching notes and aid, force schools to teach in sub-standard temporary accommodation and increase stress levels and reduce morale amongst staff. Schools are also a valuable community resource that are often used for activities out of school hours, such as local events, night classes and weddings, meaning that a school fire can have an impact on a greater number of people than is initially apparent.

6.4 Sprinklered schools that experience a fire are back in action the same day, rather than the typical two years that it takes to rebuild a school after a major fire. This minimises disruption to children's education, and reduces the stress experienced by school staff who have to teach in substandard temporary accommodation, as well as technical staff at the local authority who are taken away from normal duties to deal with the aftermath of a large fire.

THE BENEFITS OF SPRINKLERS

7.1 Sprinklers have a proven track record and are effective in controlling fires, normally with fewer than five sprinkler heads operating. There have been no fire deaths in the UK in a building fitted with a fully maintained sprinkler system. Despite the clear benefits of sprinklers, there are less than 200 systems fitted in 30,000 UK schools, and in 2004 not one of the schools suffering a large fire was fitted with a sprinkler system.

7.2 Schools are becoming more difficult to insure because of the worsening loss record. A sprinklered school is a far more attractive proposition to a wider insurance market. In recognition of the effectiveness of sprinkler systems, Zurich Municipal offers up to a 75% reduction in fire insurance premiums for schools that have sprinklers installed, and will remove the mandatory deductible/excess.

7.3 The cost of fitting a sprinkler system in a new school is typically less than 2% of the total build cost. For an Academy school, the reductions in premiums alone can pay for the sprinkler system in seven to 10 years. This will typically take 10 years for a school in an LA that is poorly performing in terms of the number of fires, 25 years for a school in an LA that is performing well, and 10-15 years for a PFI school.

7.4 A sprinkler system can reduce building costs on new-build or extensions by virtue of a trade-off with partition walls and protection on escape routes. In addition, with such innovative and contemporary design concepts being adopted in the new schools, there is the potential with sprinkler protection to explore much greater flexibility in designs that can ultimately satisfy and often exceed the end user requirements. The provision of sprinkler protection has the potential to release this level of design freedom and should receive careful consideration.

7.5 The provision of sprinklers in schools also minimises disruption to children's education, keeping the social costs of large school fires to a minimum.

7.6 The mandatory installation of sprinkler systems in all new schools will not only result in efficiency savings for schools in the long term, but also the Fire and Rescue Service. Extinguishing a large school fire can take between two and five tenders with a fire crew up to 12 hours. Sprinklers are also considerably more water efficient, with an average sprinkler using 5% of the water used by a single fire service hose.

THE DESIGN AND PROTECTION OF NEW SCHOOL BUILDINGS AND SITES

8.1 In order to assist those involved in the design, building and maintenance of schools, Zurich Municipal has produced a design guide for schools, which gives practical advice to help design schools that are less susceptible to arson attack, as well as theft and vandalism. This includes further information on the use of sprinklers and suitable construction materials in the design of schools, and is appended to this memorandum.[8]

CONCLUSION

9.1 Zurich Municipal believe that sustainable construction needs to place much greater emphasis on the fire risk associated with modern construction methods.

9.2 Additional funding and a firm commitment must be introduced to ensure sprinkler provision in all new schools and, wherever possible, in those undergoing major refurbishment.

9.3 The mandatory installation of sprinklers in new and refurbished schools would massively reduce exposure and vulnerability to fire, and therefore reduce the number of pupils studying, often for a number of years, in uninspiring mobile units.

9.4 Zurich Municipal is keen to share best practice with all those involved in the construction of new schools, either through Building Schools for the Future or more conventional procurement methods.

June 2006