A Question About The Holidays

[sqdge]

I have found that I look forward to the school holidays because, even though I don't get paid (unless I claim), it gives me a chance to fiddle with things without disturbing anybody. However, our school is only open for the first few days of the holiday, and then only for a few hours each day.

 

Is this a common thing, or is my caretaker un-necessarily mean?

[cooper]

I work through the holidays, we have a caretaker and a maintenance manager onsite, also open door for any staff who want to turn up.

 

I normally save jobs for the holiday

 

Checking the inventory

 

Installing IWB's

 

Cleaning projectors

 

Testing changes on network.

 

Installing new equipment

 

But its nice a quiet apart from my ipod lol

[sqdge]

I knew it! At the moment I can't go into school at all, even though the caretaker lives on-site and it takes him approximately 30 seconds to unlock the school. Instead I sit at home making mental lists about what I'm going to do on the PD Day (oh, and reading EduGeek a lot).

[phreak]

Yup, most school will have someone there most days throughout the holidays. Will he not give you a key so that you come come and go as you please during the holidays? If he says no then take it up with your head arguing that the holidays are a great time to do maintanance, install new equipment etc...

[sqdge]

Yup, most school will have someone there most days throughout the holidays. Will he not give you a key so that you come come and go as you please during the holidays? If he says no then take it up with your head arguing that the holidays are a great time to do maintanance, install new equipment etc...

 

I think the problem with that is because, in theory, I don't get paid to go in during the holidays (even though, logically, that is the best time for me to come in). So, since I'm not expected to go in, they won't allow me to go in.

[phreak]

Well, maybe try argue that you need a key anyway in case of server outages, etc.. blag it if you must but then when you have a key you can come and go as you please, regardless if you should be there or not.

[ChrisH]

Theres always somebody here apart from over christmas. If it comes down tot he fact there isnt going to be anyone in I get a set of keys.

[Geoff]

I have a set of keys. I have keys for nearly everything in school as far as I can tell (I confess I haven't actually worked out what a lot of the keys are for, I sometimes kill time on Fridays playing 'guess what the key opens'). So physically getting in is not an issue for me.

 

There are other admin staff, the site supervisor, etc who also appear to work full time. So there's always someone around in school.

[ConTheITGuy]

I have keys here, though they have just fitted the front door with some new fangled thing which means I can let myself in, I just can't get out again! Just me and the caretaker here full time - a couple of teachers were in the first couple of days, and the bursar is in today. Not sure I would come in if I wasn't getting paid tho - maybe I'm not dedicated enough!

 

 

Andy

[sqdge]

Blimey, I've taken to stealing the keys from the bursar's desk when she isn't looking. The only keys I am allowed to have permanently are those to the ICT Filing Cabinet and ICT Suites (all two of them). We used to have a padlock on a cupboard, but that was asked to be removed.

 

I feel like our school has a different hierarchy of staff than other schools.

[localzuk]

Wow! Some of you are allowed keys! I've got keys to my own room, the computer suites and an external door (but this is alarmed so I can't make use of it when the school is closed).

 

I keep pushing for a set of master keys but keep being told that I don't need them - which just leads me to constantly asking for doors to be unlocked and locked again.

 

Over the holidays the school is generally always open with our site manager onsite (except this one as he has gone on holiday for once! he needs to do this more often). If it isn't open and I need access I ask the SM to arrange it and he gets one of the cleaners to sort it out for me.

[sqdge]

I keep pushing for a set of master keys but keep being told that I don't need them - which just leads me to constantly asking for doors to be unlocked and locked again.

 

I'm in a similar situation - yet I'm sure I have to lock and unlock doors more than any other member of staff. Clearly we can't be trusted.

[MkII]

We don't have keys to our own room - we have to leave it unlocked - such is the state of screwed up thinking in our school.

 

On the other hand, people get very frustrated with anyone if they say they cant get in anywhere to do a job.

[User3204]

I used to have keys to the external doors, but they changed them as some of the staff lost them.

 

I still have keys to most of the internal doors, but most importantly I have a key to the cleaners key cabinet!

 

But the school is open 7am to 4pm everyday in the holidays (bank holidays excepted).

 

This is a secondary school, so we have too much scheduled, this week we'd had a guy in repainting ALL the doors, the cleaners are in at their usual times so they can varnish ALL the floors..

 

 

 

If your caretaker lives locally, ask if he will lock you INTO the building, as long as you have access to: phone, toilet, food, his/her mobile number, it shouldn't be a problem.

[Sylv3r]

Here we have a caretaker and an assistant caretaker who take it in turns to take their holidays, either of the caretakers will generally be in during the holidays to open up for deliveries, whole time reception staff, me, and workmen such as builders, decorators etc etc.

 

I have a set of keys for every internal door but not for external doors through choice as I would not want the responsibility if the school was left unlocked, alarm not armed, caretaker being called out by the alarm company at stupid o'clock etc. I know the alarm details for the various zones across the school so if necessary I can disable the alarm for any area one I am in school.

 

During the holidays the school is generally open 7:30 - 4:00 Mon - Thur 8:00 - 3:30 Fridays, but as the majority of people have said the holidays are generally a good time to get a lot of jobs completed, staff generally come in these holidays and the may holidays with students for extra revision sessions so I generally pick 1 day of network downtime and the staff work around me.

[russdev]

School is open most of holidays apart from certain dates bank and few other for example this holiday was closed friday through to Tuesday and reopened today.

 

I have keys for 80% of areas all other areas I can access by getting keys from front offices (which have keys to access) and for front door (but don't have alarm code and don't want it).

 

So I can get to just about any part of the school..

 

Russ

[kylewilliamson]

We've got access to *most* of the internal doors (all classrooms, and some offices). Key IT Areas (our spaces) are number coded. We've also got keys to one outbuilding that's often kept locked during the day.

 

Our place is open from 8:00-4:30 monday-friday excluding the bank holidays and the 3 days at christmas.

[sidewinder]

School is always open through the holidays apart from bank holidays

 

As for keys we are officially not allowed any which is a bit ridiculous, and it makes holidays really frustrating because the caretakers are very rarely anywhere you can find them

 

We are building up a collection of keys though, as over time teachers have given us spares or we've got copies of important ones we need. Maybe we shouldnt but it makes life a lot easier

[beeswax]

School is always open through the holidays apart from bank holidays

 

As for keys we are officially not allowed any which is a bit ridiculous, and it makes holidays really frustrating because the caretakers are very rarely anywhere you can find them

 

We are building up a collection of keys though, as over time teachers have given us spares or we've got copies of important ones we need. Maybe we shouldnt but it makes life a lot easier

 

We get keys to all the doors in the school, apart from certain rooms, such as the head's. But we don't have keys to the school, which is just as well.

[localzuk]

One of the things we are having installed is an electronic door lock system on key doors around the school (so external gates, computer rooms, staff rooms, staff only areas and our inner front door). This system can be linked into our alarm system if we want to in the future so certain members of staff can be given access to the school without them needing to know any numbers - all they do is wave their unique proximity card near the door and voila.

 

I've also mentioned the fact that other aspects can be tied in to the system, for example you could tie it into a zoned X10 system and when a certain keyfob is swiped it cuts the power to all the lights in the school etc... (Which, unsuprisingly, our site manager likes).

 

So, hopefully, one day, we will have access depending on what permissions are granted via the system rather than who has a key - as the system could be rolled out to all areas which need it and the classrooms all be put on a single key.

[sqdge]

One of the things we are having installed is an electronic door lock system on key doors around the school (so external gates, computer rooms, staff rooms, staff only areas and our inner front door). This system can be linked into our alarm system if we want to in the future so certain members of staff can be given access to the school without them needing to know any numbers - all they do is wave their unique proximity card near the door and voila.

 

I've also mentioned the fact that other aspects can be tied in to the system, for example you could tie it into a zoned X10 system and when a certain keyfob is swiped it cuts the power to all the lights in the school etc... (Which, unsuprisingly, our site manager likes).

 

So, hopefully, one day, we will have access depending on what permissions are granted via the system rather than who has a key - as the system could be rolled out to all areas which need it and the classrooms all be put on a single key.

 

And where exactly to you get the money to afford such a thing?!

 

At our school, getting a key cut is seen as a needless expense when I can quite easily walk from one end of the school to the other, find the key holder, ask them for the key, go with them to get the key, walk back to the other side of the school with the key, unlock the door, retrieve the object (say, a black bin liner), lock the door, walk to the other side of the school, find the key holder, go with them to where the key should be stored, deposit the key, and the walk back to my office on the other side of the school!

[localzuk]

I dunno, but we are replacing normal locks anyway as half the school has different sets of keys. So it is all part of the same thing.

 

It isn't *that* expensive really - it doubles the price of a new lock on a door - which isn't too bad for a centrally controlled door system.

 

Plus, if you look at it this way - an ID card with proximity built in costs about £10 altogether per person. This card can then be used to allow access to whichever rooms they need access to and if it is lost it can just be disabled in the system. Compare that to having different keys - on a master lock system each key costs about £5, and if one is lost we have the possibility that all the locks that that key can open would need replacing.

 

So the initial outlay may seem more expensive but the TCO actually *should* be much cheaper.

[Ric_]

I have keys to the block where my office is and most of the rooms containing lots of 'puters. I also have a gate key.

 

I don't have a fob to turn the alarm off though so I cannot sneak in. To be honest though, i wouldn't want to be in work alone... you hear horror stories of places being turned over during holidays (sometimes by armed thieves!) and it leaves you open to accusations if bad things happen. It's a sad world that we live in unfortunately.

[localzuk]

I'm not too worried about crime down here. It is headline news if someone breaks a window somewhere... Still, I don't often need to be onsite on my own so it is not much of an issue.

 

Plus, it is a case of trust - if they accuse you of something without any valid evidence then it is a case of unfair dismissal.

[derer1]

Wow - full set of master keys + alarm codes here. Makes life *so* much easier in the holidays!