Bourne Alliance Multi-Academy Trust, Kent

Project Overview

Bourne Alliance Multi-Academy Trust is responsible for fire safety across four schools in the Sittingbourne area of Kent: Iwade School, Grove Park Academy, Aspire School and Bobbing Village School. As the responsible person under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, the trust has a duty to keep its fire doors and compartmentation in efficient working order, and to hold the records to show it.

The trust had tried to engage contractors before. Each time, the process stalled: responses were slow, guidance was unclear, and nobody could explain what the trust needed to do or why. The estate was left in an unknown compliance state, with no clear route forward.

Vanguard mobilised within weeks of instruction and took all four schools through the full ARM Process: Assess, Reinstate, Maintain.

Stage 1: Assess

Before any remedial work began, the trust needed to know exactly where each school stood. We developed compartmentation plans, carried out compartmentation surveys and completed fire door inspections across the estate. Aspire School already had compartmentation plans in place, which we validated and built on.

At Iwade School, establishing the compartmentation plans first showed that fewer doors needed treatment than expected, which kept the remedial scope, and the cost, down.

• Iwade School: 16 fire doors. Compartmentation plans developed, inspection and survey complete.
• Grove Park Academy: 33 fire doors. Compartmentation plans developed, inspection and survey complete.
• Aspire School: 21 fire doors. Existing plans validated, inspection and survey complete.
• Bobbing Village School: 25 fire doors. Compartmentation plans developed, inspection and survey complete.

Stage 2: Reinstate

With every defect documented, we scoped a remediation project for each school. Works ranged from minor repairs and hardware adjustments to full doorset replacements where doors were beyond economic repair. All work was carried out in line with BS 8214 and, where manufacturer certification was available, to the original specification. Doorset replacements were carried out at weekends, so the schools could run as normal during the week.

• Iwade School: remediation complete, with a mix of repairs and replacements.
• Grove Park Academy: remediation instructed and underway.
• Aspire School: remediation complete, with door removals and replacements.
• Bobbing Village School: remediation instructed and underway.

Stage 3: Maintain

As each remediation project completes, the school moves onto a three-year Maintain Premier maintenance contract: scheduled inspections, minor maintenance and documented reporting, managed by Vanguard so the trust's fire doors stay compliant without the trust having to chase it.

• Iwade School and Aspire School: three-year Maintain Premier contracts in place, with annual inspections and minor maintenance.
• Grove Park Academy and Bobbing Village School: three-year Maintain Premier contracts agreed, starting on completion of the remedial works.

Client Feedback

"Vanguard has been a great company to work with during the course of our project to improve the fire compartmentation within our schools. The team are very knowledgeable about all matters of fire safety and general health & safety and are always quick to respond to emails and phone calls, often assisting with advice about wider issues, also. We now feel confident we have made some great improvements to the safety of our buildings and Vanguard's professional and helpful approach has been key in achieving this."

Head of Compliance, Bourne Alliance Multi-Academy Trust

Results and Outcomes

• A compliance baseline established across all four schools, with compartmentation plans and inspection records in place for the first time.
• 95 fire doors inspected, defects documented and remediation instructed across the whole estate.
• Mobilised within weeks of instruction, where previous contractors had been unable to progress the works.
• Three-year maintenance contracts agreed for all four schools, giving the trust a managed compliance programme for the long term.