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Risks and rewards
Hiring out your buildings and grounds can be profitable but opens the possibility of property damage and liability challenges. Careful control and management can significantly reduce these risks.
Most importantly, carry out an assessment for all hiring and letting opportunities, taking into account the nature of the activities and participants. You might need to think about preventing access to some parts of the building or site. If activities take place during school hours, and visitors might come into contact with students, you may also need to review safeguarding arrangements.
Decide in advance what you are and aren’t prepared to accept. For example, you may be happy to let out a building to a local playgroup, but draw the line at a teenager’s birthday party.
Review your security, fire evacuation and property management guidelines with reference to:
- the type of events you’re prepared to let property for
- the number and frequency of third party events
- the number of people attending.
A common example
Many schools let members of the public use their sports halls and other sports facilities out of school hours, creating a regular income stream. But it isn’t just a case of opening the site and locking it up again.
A suitable induction should be provided for those new to the equipment, and you may also need to provide supervision and first aid tailored to the specific activities and participants.
Insurance
The school will have its own Public Liability (PL) insurance but this won’t cover third party events. Instead, hirers should have their own PL insurance in place with an adequate level of indemnity. They should prepare risk assessments for their activities, and copies should be handed to the school.
In all cases…
Regardless of what you want to let out and for what purpose, you should:
- Create a procedures document to be followed by hirers when using the property and ask hirers to agree to these procedures before events.
- Draw up a formal hiring agreement for hirers to sign.
- Put arrangements in place to ensure proper coordination and cooperation between the school and hirers during events.
- Occasionally, observe events to ensure they meet your understanding and expectations.
Want to know more?
For more information about hiring and letting school premises, download our guide.
Documents
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