A School Connection working guide / Published 5 November 2026
Prepare your school’s next protective-security decision
Use this record to bring the right people and information into one conversation. Start with the school as it operates, including its visitors and activities beyond the teaching day. Record what you know, what needs checking and who will resolve it.
You can use the suggested questions with existing school records and approved plans. Leave the meeting with a clear next action, whether that is confirming scope, improving an arrangement or preparing a defined brief for specialist help.
This is a School Connection preparation tool for education settings in England, reviewed on 5 November 2026. It is not a mandatory risk-assessment form, a legal determination or a certificate of compliance. Suggested owners describe useful contributors, not the statutory responsible person. Keep pupil information, detailed vulnerabilities, access arrangements and operational security plans within approved school systems. Reference those records here without reproducing sensitive content. Existing safeguarding, health and safety and other applicable duties continue.
Bring existing evidence to the conversation.
Use the guide with relevant school, trust or proprietor colleagues. Suggested owners are a starting point for discussion, not a determination of legal responsibility. Record the source of an answer, what remains uncertain and the person who will resolve it.
Keep personal information, confidential security plans and detailed vulnerabilities in the school’s approved records. The blank download is completed locally. It does not submit information to School Connection.
Stage 01
Establish the premises and the people present
A pupil-roll figure cannot settle the scope question on its own. Describe the premises being considered and use a reasonable method to establish the greatest number of people expected at the same time, from time to time. Include staff and visitors as well as pupils, and retain the evidence behind the estimate.
- Which buildings and associated land are being considered together, and what supports that boundary?
- Which school activities, visitors and working patterns inform the attendance estimate, and where is its evidence held?
- Which use, control or event arrangements need clarification before the school reaches a conclusion?
Leave this stage with: An explained working scope, an evidence reference for expected attendance and a named owner for any unresolved classification question.
Stage 02
Separate legal responsibility from coordination
Identify the body or person responsible under the statutory framework before assigning preparation tasks. A headteacher, business professional or security lead may coordinate work without becoming the statutory responsible person. Record the basis for the school’s understanding and seek appropriate advice where the position is uncertain.
- Which governing body, trust, proprietor or other body has been identified, and which official guidance supports that understanding?
- Who coordinates the review, authorises work and reports unresolved matters to the accountable body?
- Who checks commencement and SIA notification arrangements, and when will that position be reviewed?
Leave this stage with: A responsibility record that distinguishes the statutory position, delegated tasks and the next governance decision.
Stage 03
Review the procedures people need to understand
Bring the school’s existing evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication arrangements into the review. Ask appropriate staff to examine how the arrangements work together for the people using the premises. This is a preparation discussion, not a set of instructions for responding to an incident.
- Where are the approved arrangements held, who owns them and what has already been reviewed?
- How are age, disability, SEND, language and other assistance needs considered with the relevant colleagues?
- How will staff understanding and unresolved practical questions be reviewed safely with competent advice where needed?
Leave this stage with: A short account of the arrangements already available, the questions requiring attention and the people who can resolve them.
Stage 04
Follow responsibility beyond the school day
Consider boarding, clubs, lettings and other activities relevant to this school. Establish who operates each activity and how they understand the premises’ approved procedures. A busy school event does not automatically change standard-tier educational premises into enhanced-tier premises; clarify the actual arrangement before applying an event threshold.
- Which activities involve other operators, different staff or people unfamiliar with the school?
- Where are the relevant control, communication and contractual arrangements recorded?
- Does a separate premises or unusual event arrangement need advice on its own facts?
Leave this stage with: A record of relevant users, the arrangements connecting them and any scope or coordination issue still requiring an answer.
Stage 05
Give any further work a clear purpose
Begin with the question the school needs answered. Review existing capability and free official resources before commissioning support. If advice, training or equipment would address an identified need, define its intended contribution, full cost, deliverables and review arrangements. Agree how the school will judge the result.
- What evidence supports the proposed work, and what can existing staff, providers or free resources establish first?
- What will the commission include, who can authorise it and what will demonstrate useful delivery?
- Who owns remaining actions, and which date, official update or operating change will trigger the next review?
Leave this stage with: An owned next action or proportionate brief, with its cost, expected evidence and acceptance decision recorded.
Carry the review into your next meeting
Give each unresolved question an owner.
The download provides blank columns for your findings, evidence reference, action, owner and review date. Adapt the suggested roles to the school’s arrangements and keep the preparation record under review as official guidance or local circumstances change.
Download the working record (CSV)Preview the review areas and questions
| Review area | Suggested owner | Question to resolve |
|---|---|---|
| Premises and use | Estates lead with governance support | Which premises and associated land are under review, what are their relevant uses and where is the evidence for that boundary held? |
| Expected simultaneous attendance | School operations lead | What is the reasonable greatest expected attendance at the same time, from time to time, including pupils, staff and visitors? Record the method, evidence reference and uncertainty. |
| Working scope and tier | Governance lead with advice where needed | What conclusion does the official framework support for these premises, including the school-specific standard-tier treatment? Which fact still needs checking? |
| Statutory responsible person | Governing body, trust or proprietor as applicable | Which body or person is identified under the statutory framework, and what supports that understanding? Record any need for clarification rather than selecting a convenient job title. |
| Preparation coordinator | Senior leadership team | Who coordinates the work, who may authorise changes and how will the accountable body receive decisions and unresolved questions? |
| Commencement and notification | Governance lead | Which current official source records commencement and notification arrangements? Spring 2027 remains expected, with the exact date to be confirmed. Record who will check the next update. |
| Four public-protection procedures | Relevant school and premises leads | Where are the existing evacuation, invacuation, lockdown and communication arrangements held? Which review or explanation is needed, with competent advice where appropriate? |
| Inclusion and staff understanding | Safeguarding and SEND leads with staff representatives | How are assistance needs and staff understanding considered? Reference approved records and identify the next review without recording personal pupil information here. |
| Boarding, lettings and other users | Operations lead with relevant activity operators | Which out-of-hours activities or other operators need coordinated arrangements? Record control and contract references, and any distinct premises or event question requiring advice. |
| Existing capability and free resources | Preparation coordinator | Which existing plans, staff capabilities, providers and official free resources can address the identified question? What useful evidence or capability remains missing? |
| Any commissioned work | Budget holder with relevant specialist advice | What defined need would the work address, what is included in the full cost and who will judge delivery? Distinguish a chosen improvement from a purchase claimed to be legally mandatory. |
| Acceptance and next review | Accountable body with the preparation coordinator | What has been established, what remains unresolved and who owns each next action? Record the evidence needed for acceptance and the date or change that will trigger review. |
Use the official support alongside your record.
The DfE’s 3 November explainer should be read with the Home Office statutory guidance. The SIA’s implementation information explains the regulator’s current position.
The DfE also provides protective preparedness guidance and self-assessment templates. These official resources retain their own purpose. School Connection’s suggested record is a way to prepare a leadership discussion.
Where the facts or responsibilities are uncertain, identify the question and obtain appropriate advice before relying on a conclusion or authorising work. A completed record is not a compliance certificate or an assessment of a particular school’s security.