School maintenance
School maintenance is an ongoing process that manages all our school assets to keep them in optimal condition, reach their maximum life cycle and ensure the safety of our school community.
We classify school maintenance into 3 key areas:
- Planned maintenance: An annual maintenance program developed for each school based on inspections undertaken by the Asset Services Officer's.
- Proactive maintenance: Regular scheduled maintenance that keeps buildings and equipment safe and operational.
- Reactive maintenance: Asset repair: Callouts to resolve or repair a breakdown to essential services or other asset failures.
Planned maintenance
Planned maintenance ensures we keep our schools in good condition and address every school’s maintenance needs individually.
With the exception of hospital schools and schools in correctional centres, planned maintenance is reviewed annually. We identify assets that may require maintenance work as their condition may have deteriorated or is near end-of-life.
Examples of planned maintenance works include:
- painting (internally and externally)
- replacing worn-out items such as floor coverings, windows and doors
- roof replacements
- bathroom refurbishment.
Planned maintenance frequency
Each item in a school has an expected life cycle. However, some items may deteriorate or require maintenance sooner than anticipated. A great example is carpet. In low traffic areas, like an office space, it may need replacing every 8 years, but carpet in a hallway may need to be replaced more frequently.
For this reason, all items will be inspected and assessed for the need to undertake maintenance works.
This task is generally completed by an Asset Services Officer responsible for the school. The Asset Services Officer will review the life cycle condition information, validate the work required on the site and determine if any other items have deteriorated faster than anticipated. The scope of the works to be undertaken is developed and planned for delivery, with consultation with the Principal.
School-initiated project proposals
Aside from maintaining our existing assets, we continuously review the accommodation needs and condition of our schools and aim to provide equity in facilities for our students and staff.
Due to the large number of schools in NSW, it is not possible to upgrade all schools at the same time. However, schools can propose an upgrade or addition by submitting a project proposal, which may be partially or wholly funded by the school. The proposal is then assessed and if approved progresses with consultation between School Infrastructure and the school Principal.
Contact us
If you see a maintenance issue at your school, please report it to your Principal. If urgent, your Principal will log the job in FMWeb for urgent attention. Otherwise they will discuss the issue with their Asset Services Officer who is responsible for the management of all school assets and maintenance.
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