Minimum Temperatures All schools in England and Wales adhere to the Education (School Premises) Regulations 1999. Below is an overview of the main requirements:
- All temperatures should be measured 0.5m (1ft 7in) above the floor
- Classrooms and libraries should be a minimum of 18 °C
- Sick rooms and nurses offices should be a minimum of 21°C and gyms and workshops should be a minimum of 15°C
These requirements are different to normal workplace environments due to the fact that children are more sensitive to lower temperatures. If a school is not able to meet these requirements then a decision must be made by the principal or head teacher as to whether the school should close. This is not a legal requirement and at least 24 hours’ notice is recommended, especially for primary schools.
Maximum Temperatures
England and Wales do not have a prescribed maximum temperature, even for educational buildings. The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 only states that reasonable steps must be taken to ensure a “comfortable environment.” Most organisations who deal with workplace health agree that a temperature range of 18 °C to 24°C should be maintained to avoid issues.
Ventilation
Nobody likes a stuffy workplace. An office or classroom that does not have the correct amount of oxygen flow can reduce the concentration, productivity and comfort of its occupants. In schools and colleges it is even more important as the occupants need alert minds to learn and develop.
The Education (School Premises) Regulations states that three litres of fresh air, per person, per second should be present in every room.
361 Degrees
With over 35 years of experience of working in primary and secondary schools, colleges, and academies, 361 Degrees understands the unique challenges of working in an educational environment.
To help them, and you, we have designed a range of education installation and servicing packages that includes as standard:
- school holiday working at no extra cost
- all our engineers are DBS Checked
- can install new systems or simply manage ageing existing systems
- free site survey, design and project management
- a quote price promise - no extra costs for the system we design
If you would like to find out more then drop me an email or call me on 0845 2221 900.
