School lockdown – the foundation of a security plan

Access control is the way a school manages credentials and the access and egress of its staff, students, and visitors daily. It’s the most critical aspect of any school safety strategy. However, in the event of an emergency, access control is not enough. A security plan requires a lockdown strategy to manage the comings and goings of each opening on demand, in the moment, as soon as the emergency arises.

• Security layers - Every education facility can be broken down into exterior and interior layers. When creating a lockdown strategy, it is critical to include these layers in your planning process.
• People and protocols - A school’s ability to activate lockdown relies on the people and protocols they have in place. Protocols must be clearly established and regularly practiced. Likewise, whichever solutions they have, they need trained people    who can properly execute them in the event of an emergency.
   

The importance of lockdown cannot be overstated. It directly impacts a school’s ability to safeguard students, staff and visitors within its walls.

Allegion offers several lockdown options for Australian education providers:

• Manual lockdown - Keys and mechanical hardware lock down a room or space. While the speed of the lockdown can depend on how fast staff can get to a door, it is the most economic option.
• Remote lockdown - A standalone, electronic solution providing instant local lockdown. The lockdown is activated by a fob within proximity of the door, and is the most economical electronic solution.
• Centralised lockdown – An industry leading, centralised electronic solution providing lockdown in seconds across the entire facility.

How do education providers recognise the need for a lockdown solution?

• If the door hardware requires an individual to step out of the room to lock the door
• Hardware with no ability to restrict who locks or unlocks the door
• The hardware has been prevented to latch (which breaches fire ratings)
• Doors that do not automatically close
• Hardware that is not permanently attached to the door
• Door hardware that slows down entering or leaving a room during an emergency

For decades, Allegion have been helping schools throughout Australia and New Zealand evaluate needs and with specific facilities, working with budgets and individual requirements.

Contact Allegion for support on developing a secure, strategic and smart solution.