A letting may be defined as ‘any use of the school premises (buildings and grounds) by either individuals or community groups (such as local music group, or football team), or a commercial organisation (such as the local branch of ‘Weight Watchers’)”. A letting must not interfere with the primary activity of the school, which is to provide a high standard of education for all its pupils. Use of the premises for activities such as staff meetings, parents’ meetings’, Governing Body meetings and extra-curricular activities of pupils supervised by school staff, fall within the corporate life of the school. Costs arising from these uses are therefore a legitimate charge against the school’s budget. 

This use of the school premises by way of a letting is a temporary arrangement for the use of the accommodation. It is expected that the letting will usually be by completion of a school letting form, or occasionally a more formal licence or lease. 

The Headteacher is responsible for the management of lettings, in accordance with the Governing Body’s policy and retains overall responsibility for the lettings process. At Co-op Academy Bebington, the management of the lettings process has been delegated to the Operations Manager who will be the primary contact for all lettings enquires.  

The Operations Manager will resolve any conflicting requests for the use of the premises, with school functions always receiving priority. 

Should the Headteacher/ Operations Manager have any concern about the appropriateness of a particular request for a letting, he/she will consult the Chairman of the Governing Body. 

Those seeking to hire part of the school premises should approach the Operations Manager who will identify their requirement and clarify the facilities available. Discounts may be negotiated with Hirers wishing to enter into long term lettings contracts; details available on request from the Operations Manager.

An Application form (a copy of which is attached to this policy in Appendix 1) should be completed at this stage to provide basic details of the applicant. The Operations Manager will consider this with regard to the matters contained in this policy and shall advise the applicant of his/her decision. 

Once a letting has been approved, a letter of confirmation will be sent to the Hirer setting out full details of the letting and enclosing a copy of the terms and conditions and the relevant agreement. The letting agreement must be signed and returned to the school before the letting can take place. The Hirer must give their full details including their full name, permanent private address (for individual lettings), contact details, full business address and any registered Charity/Company registration numbers. 

The person applying to hire the premises on behalf of the Hirer will be invoiced for the cost of the letting, in accordance with the Governing Body’s current scale of charges. 

The Governing Body maintains the right to refuse an application and no letting should be regarded as ‘booked’ until approval has been given in writing, any deposit/ pre-payment has been paid as appropriate and approval has been given by the relevant person on behalf of the school.  No public announcement of any activity or function taking place should be made by the organisation concerned until the booking has been confirmed in writing. 

The Headteacher or the Chair of the Governing Body has the immediate power to terminate any letting agreement relating to the hire of the school premises and grounds, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the agreement. 

The school’s delegated budget must not be used to subsidise any lettings unless it is of direct benefit to pupils. A charge will be made to meet the costs incurred by the school for any lettings of the premises. 

The Governing Body is responsible for setting charges for the letting of the school premises. A charge will be levied which covers the following:

• Cost of services (heating, lighting, etc.);
• Cost of staffing (additional security, caretaking and cleaning, etc.), including all associated costs for national Insurance and pension contributions;
• Cost of administration;
• Cost of ‘wear and tear’;
• Cost of use of school equipment, if applicable.

A full review of premises-related financial and energy costs will be undertaken each year by the Finance Manager who will establish a scale of charges for the forthcoming year. This scale of charges will be reviewed annually by the Governing Body for implementation from the beginning of the next academic year. 

Charges should be paid before the commencement of the letting, but in any event, the Hirer must pay within 28 days before the commencement of the letting. Failure to do so will mean that no further use of the premises can be made until such costs are paid in full. Legal proceedings will commence in cases where such payments are not forthcoming. Where possible, payments should be made by BACS / EFT to the following bank account:

Account name: Co-op Academy Bebington

Sort code: 30-95-42

Account no: 82193468

Reference: please insert hirer’s name / club name in reference field.

All lettings fees which are received by the school will be paid into the school delegated budget in order to offset the costs of services, staffing, etc. (which are funded directly from the school delegated budget). Income and expenditure associated with lettings will be regularly monitored to ensure that at least a “break-even” situation is being achieved. 

The school must check with the Hirer that the number of persons using the premises does not exceed that for which the application was made and approval given, and that all terms and conditions are being adhered to, including responsibility for payment of all fees or other sums due in respect of the letting. 

It is the Hirer’s responsibility to ensure that all those attending the premises are made aware that they do so entirely at their own risk. A written risk assessment will be conducted for each hiring/ activity by both the school and Hirer. Copies must be provided to the Hirer and also kept on file at school. 

The Hirer must confirm to the Governing body that it has appropriate public liability insurance to cover all its legal liabilities for accidents resulting in injuries to persons (including participants in the activity for which the premises are being hired), and/or loss of or damage to property, including the hired premises, arising out of the letting. The minimum limit for this insurance is £2 million. The Hirer must produce the appropriate certificate of insurance cover before the letting can be confirmed. 

Neither the school, nor the local authority, will be responsible for any injury to persons or damage to property arising out of the letting of the premises. 

Lettings will not be made to persons under the age of 18, or to any organisation, group or individual with an unlawful or extremist background, or to anybody to whom the school does not wish to hire the premises. The Hirer shall ensure that, where a hiring involves activities aimed predominantly at children, he/she will have appropriate safeguarding policies and procedures in place and that he/she and all persons likely to have contact with children have been subject to Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) checks.  

The Governing Body reserves the right to request evidence from the Hirer that enhanced DBS checks have been carried out on all persons; to review safeguarding policies and procedures; and to impose any additional requirements they consider appropriate in connection with the hiring. If, for any reason, the Governing Body is not satisfied, then they reserve the right to cancel any hiring and there shall be no liability to the Hirer other than to refund any hiring fee or deposit paid. 

It is the responsibility of the Hirer to make a prior judgement before the booking as to whether the facilities available at the school are suitable for disabled access. 

The Governing Body reserves the right of access to premises during any letting. The Headteacher or members of the Governing Body may monitor activities from time to time. The Headteacher will decide conflicting requests for the use of the premises, with priority at all times being given to school functions. Access to the school’s toilet facilities is included as part of the hire arrangements. Subject to availability, car parking facilities may be available for use by the Hirer and other adults involved in the letting. The Hirer will request this in the Application Form. 

The school will provide the Hirer with copies of appropriate school policies e.g. Lettings, Complaints, Fire Evacuation, Equality, Child Protection, and Health & Safety, with which the Hirer is required to comply. 

Any electrical equipment brought by the Hirer onto the school site MUST have a current PAT test. Equipment must either have a certificate of safety from a qualified electrical engineer or be inspected by the school and certified fit for use. The intention to use any electrical equipment must be notified on the application form. 

The Hirer shall pay the cost of any reparation required. No stiletto or any type of thin heel is to be worn. If activities involve outdoor use, Hirers should ensure footwear is cleaned before re-entering the premises. Any damages or broken equipment must be reported to the Operations Manager or his/her representative, whether caused by the Hirer or otherwise, as good vigilance will ensure the safety of all other users. 

There is no legal requirement for the school to provide first aid facilities for the Hirer. It is suggested that the Hirer makes its own arrangements as use of the school’ s resource is not available. 

No food or drink may be prepared or consumed on the premises without the direct permission of the Governing Body, in line with current food hygiene regulations. All litter must be placed in the bins provided. No intoxicants/ unlawful drugs shall be brought onto, or consumed/ used on the premises. The whole of the school premises, including the external areas, is a non-smoking area and smoking is not permitted. 

The use of school equipment must be formally requested on the application form and its use must be approved by the Headteacher. Responsible adults must supervise the use of any equipment which is issued and ensure its safe return. The Hirer is liable for any damage, loss or theft of school equipment it is using, and for the equipment’s safe and appropriate use. Untrained or inappropriate use of equipment may lead to damage to floors, etc. or render the equipment inoperable, causing service delivery disruption until the item can be repaired or replaced. 

The Hirer shall ensure that the premises are vacated promptly at the end of each period of use or letting. The Hirer is responsible for supervising any children taking part in an activity until they are collected by a responsible adult. Additional charges will be made where the caretaker is unable to lock up whilst the Hirer ensure children are safely vacated beyond the time agreed in the letting agreement. 

Noise levels must be kept to a minimum to prevent disruption to our neighbours in the local community and to other groups using the premises. 

The school will hire and pay Community Lettings Officers who will be responsible for the security of the premises before, during and after the hire, and for the cleaning of the premises after its use. This cost will be included in the cost of the letting. Only named key holders may operate the security system. Keys should not be passed to any other person without direct permission of the site landlord. 

September 2021 – August 2022

Storage of equipment can be arranged for an additional charge, please contact the school on 0151 641 6676 for more information.