We look to our schools to provide a safe learning environment for our children, and in the main Australian schools do a good job with the funds they are allocated. So does school funding go far enough, and how do schools set their priorities and balance expenditure against funding allocations?
More and more schools tell us they rely on contributions from Parents and Citizens to make ends meet. Schools do what they can when they can. School funding is clearly inadequate.
How often do items on that list of things to do roll over from one year to another as a result of lack of funding and or resource, and what is the final cost of ignoring fixing issues early in the piece?
The cost of providing a safe work place, & or not providing a safe work place in today’s schools is increasing annually, with increased costs of premiums and claims, costs considerable by any account.
Our research suggests that a major contributor to insurance claims resulting from accidents in the work place are a result of slips, trips and falls. Common hazards can include;
- Narrow walkways,
- Dangerous fixings and finishes on floors and walls,
- Floor damage and or uneven walkway surfaces,
- Poor or no signage or warnings,
- Poor lighting,
- Obstructed view of the walkway,
- Loose Matts,
- Clutter on the floor,
- Loose cords and cables, &
- Water on the floor & slippery pathways.
General housekeeping and attention to detail addresses most of the above, like picking up loose cords and cleaning up spills etc, the obvious normally attended to quickly, unfortunately some of the above does go unattended. Hazards like narrow walkways, poor lighting, obscured vision, uneven floors etc are often overlooked due to shortfalls in funding, worse still they have been there so long they’re considered every day.
Today’s modern buildings address much of the above through compliance to standards such as AS1428 and the Australian building code, standards and codes that are prescriptive in detail related to new building design. However, many of our schools were designed and built prior to current building regulations and standards, many older buildings unwittingly accumulating hazards, most adopted as good ideas at the time.
A example of an adopted hazard is where walkways are obstructed or narrowed as a result of the introduction of furniture like seating, lockers or bag racks (fixed and or loose) outside classrooms, specifically those areas where walkways are already tight for example second story balconies etc.
The problem of clutter on the floor is an ever-present issue both for new and old builds. The most popular example of which results from school bags dumped on the ground in front of doorways and in passageways forming not only a potential trip hazard’s, as they do obstructions to emergency egress paths.
Insurance companies will tell you that understanding your responsibility in attending to existing and potential hazards is important, and it is. So, what is the cost of ignoring hazards? The answer is significant.
Safehook Australia can help. Safehook offer an affordable means of providing wall storage for bags, hats and clothing, getting gear off the floor and onto the wall. Our products are compact, built tough, suitable for indoors and or outdoor installation and designed to minimise trauma associated with falling against the product.
Replacing bag racks and lockers with bag hooks not only potentially increases walkway space, it reduces cleaning, and reduces maintenance, offering reduced costs, savings that over time add up, aside from other benefits of increasing visibility and improving general safety (no place for rubbish and or other more sinister things to hide), our products are affordable, quick and easy to install.
For more information and or to buy our products visit the Safe Hook web site www.safehook.com.au and or call 07 3511 1668 we’d be happy to help you.
Our products are available in convenient pack’s to find out more visit our on-line store. Click here