With pupils and staff now back in the routine of the school year, Keraflo is encouraging facilities managers to use the start of term to plan water-system remedial work well ahead of the next holiday closures.
The return to school can bring a full operational agenda, from estates priorities and budgets to classroom improvements and statutory checks. Yet it is also the ideal point to look forward. By planning now for the Christmas and Easter breaks and, where larger projects are concerned, summer 2027, schools can create the time and access needed to address issues in cold-water storage and distribution systems without unnecessary disruption to teaching and learning.
“During term time, taking water services out of use, accessing plant areas and coordinating specialist contractors can be difficult. Planned closures offer a more practical environment for inspections, tank cleaning, component replacement and other remedial work, particularly when scope, budget and contractor availability have been agreed early,” explains Richard Braid, Managing Director of Keraflo.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) advises dutyholders to keep hot and cold-water storage tanks, pipework and outlets clean, noting that stagnant water favours Legionella growth. It also advises that infrequently used outlets should be flushed regularly, as determined by the risk assessment and carried out by competent people. For school facilities teams, a proactive programme can make holiday periods more than a last-minute maintenance window: it can turn them into planned milestones within a wider water-management strategy.
Keraflo, which develops and manufactures delayed-action mechanical valves and electronic tank-management systems for cold-water storage tanks in commercial and public buildings, says that the first weeks of a new term are an important opportunity to identify priorities for the year ahead.
Richard continues: “Once the school year is under way, it is easy for longer-term maintenance projects to slip down the agenda. However, the most effective approach is to start planning before the next closure arrives. By using the autumn term to assess their systems and agree a realistic programme, facilities managers can make best use of the Christmas and Easter breaks and, for more substantial works, secure the time and resource they need for summer 2027.”
At the heart of that planning is a clear understanding of the site’s water system. Facilities teams should review the relevant risk assessment and maintenance records; identify tanks, outlets, pipework or components that need closer attention; and decide which actions can be completed during shorter closures and which require a longer summer programme. Any actions should be appropriate to the site’s individual system and carried out in line with its risk assessment.
It is also important to consider water movement and storage. Keraflo’s delayed-action mechanical valves are designed to allow a larger fall in tank level before refilling, helping to promote turnover. Its Tanktronic electronic tank-management system monitors water levels and temperature and can support the monitoring and control of cold-water storage tanks.
For some schools, Christmas may provide the right window for a focused inspection, small upgrade or targeted remedial task. The Easter break can offer a further opportunity to complete follow-on works before the summer term. Where a project needs more extensive access or coordination, making a decision now can help facilities managers secure contractor availability and plan around the summer 2027 shutdown rather than competing for support at the last minute.
Keraflo is advising facilities managers to make water-system planning part of the new-school-year agenda. Taking action now can help schools enter each closure with a defined programme of work, rather than a list of unresolved maintenance issues.
For more information on Keraflo visit www.keraflo.co.uk