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SITE SAFETY & SECURITY OVERSIGHT PLAN
 
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This plan describes the manner in which Richland County School District One (RCSD1) intends to provide design and implement controls and requirements that will enhance the aspects of safety and security at RCSD1 facilities during construction and renovation phases related to the 2002 Bond Referendum.

Of special concern is the welfare and safety of the students, staff and visitors and the security of facilities during the variety of phases of construction, renovation and occupancy of the applicable facility.

Another area of concern is the control and recognition of employees of firms and companies associated with the construction projects. A determined use of identification of employees, visitors by identification cards, strong presence of project managers and management representatives of firms and as well oversight by a designated representative from the District's insurance carrier will be paramount in the enforcement of safety and security concerns. 

Contractors will be responsible for ensuring communication means, such as appropriate signage, as set forth herein, will be and enforced as required by applicable governmental agencies. Equally important, will be a strong emphasis placed on contractors and insurance representatives to employ individuals assigned to RCSD1 projects who can effectively converse in both English and Spanish.

Recognizing the possibility that there is a direct relationship between the design and use of school facilities and the occurrence of unacceptable and/or criminal behaviors. Prevention through environmental design principles underlies the concept of proper design and effective use of the physical environment can reduce both the opportunity and unacceptable performance and exposure risks. A safer environment, in turn, can create a psychological advantage for positive behavior and for learning.

Therefore, concerted efforts will be made by the District to evaluate each site closely and where practical and feasible, attempt to set in place the following guidelines:

ACCESS CONTROL

Controlling campus access, either through natural or formal components, is a basic concept of creating a safe school climate. Often, it is the non-student who represents a threat to school safety, rather than students who are enrolled in the school.

Campus Perimeter: Design the campus so that visitors and guests must pass through a particular point or entrance.

Entrances and Exits: Minimize the number of entrances and exits to the campus and direct traffic flow, both vehicular and pedestrian, to eliminate confusion and congestion and to provide ease of observation. Design parking areas to limit and control access.

Visitor Parking: Clearly identify visitor parking with proper signage and set up visitor traffic, both vehicular and pedestrian, in a way that it can be easily supervised from the main office or by assigned security personnel.

Visitor Screening: Clearly worded and placed signage should direct visitors to the main office or designated visitor reception areas where they can be screened, using uniform visitor screening procedures, to ensure that they have legitimate business on campus.

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NATURAL SURVEILLANCE

Formal Gathering Areas: Gathering areas should be officially located subject to natural surveillance or access control or located outside the view of the would-be offender. Informal areas then become off-limits and subject to automatic scrutiny. Clear spatial definition will cause unauthorized users to feel at greater risk and encourage staff to assume greater ownership for supervising such areas.

Natural Supervision: Enhance natural supervision by eliminating architectural barriers. Ensure open sight lines through the design and placement of buildings, landscaping components, lighting, and access control.

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FORMAL SURVEILLANCE

High-risk and high-incidence areas should be identified through a formal crime reporting process to guide the assignment of appropriate supervision.

High-risk Areas: To the extent possible, design high-risk areas to accommodate natural surveillance and to facilitate formal supervision where required. Such areas may include the main entrance or campus perimeter-especially where problems with intruders are typical. Toilet rooms, corridors, stairways, and locker clusters are often key trouble spots. Commons areas and courtyards frequently have similar problems. Remote locations, such as parking areas, may create additional risks.

Remote Surveillance: Where limited staff availability or a high number of identified problem areas generate a need for other, more formal surveillance options, security specialists should be consulted on the potential use of surveillance equipment, including specifications, placement, operation, and management of the equipment.

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TERRITORIALITY

Territoriality is the personalization of space that might be available to any person in order to emphasize the perception of ownership. This translates to the identification of territories within the school campus, assignment of internal territories to "proprietors," and assignment of general supervision and care responsibilities that go with "ownership" of the identified spaces.

Delineation of Space: Space should be clearly delineated throughout the campus to encourage territoriality and better control. For example, it should be clear to anyone when they are moving from the fine arts wing to the science department or to the math department, or from one "house" to another in the lower grades. Smaller spaces may be assigned to individual teachers or staff.

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DEFENSIBLE SPACE

Environmental concepts can contribute to the productive management of schools by providing clearly marked transitional zones that indicate movement from spaces designated for public, combined, and private-only use.

Access Points: Reduce access points to parking areas to decrease the perception that they are public spaces, reduce the possible escape routes for potential offenders, and increase the perception that they are risky for the potential intruder. Use gates to close off unnecessary entrances during low-use times to control access and reinforce the perception that the parking areas are private.

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TARGET HARDENING

Effective target hardening maintains a balance between the development and implementation of appropriate security measures versus creating an image of a prison or fortress. It must include the vigorous identification, apprehension, and prosecution of criminals, to the end that the school campus becomes unattractive as a site for entertainment or wrongdoing.

Target Hardening: Design facilities with the idea of making the perpetrator's objective difficult to attain and of controlling crime by slowing the perpetrator's progress.

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PROGRAM INTERACTION

Effective program interaction can be achieved through a combination of designing facilities that enhance both natural and formal supervision and the development and utilization of a close partnership among law enforcement and emergency service personnel, administration, staff, and students.

Enhanced Natural Surveillance: If necessary, areas where unauthorized infringement might normally occur should be assigned only to activities which are easily supervised. Natural surveillance for these activities will be enhanced through increased perceptions of safety for the legitimate user and risk for the potential offender. Conversely, activities which are more difficult to supervise, should be assigned to areas where infringement is typically less likely to occur.

Conflict Reduction: Provide separate entrances and exits to areas that are associated with high volume use, such as cafeterias and corridors. This serves to reduce time required for movement into and out of such spaces and thereby reduce the opportunity for personal conflict. Separation or differentiation of student traffic flow can help define orderly movement and save time, and the illegitimate user will feel at greater risk of detection.

Communication: Design communication systems to overcome the barriers posed by distance and isolation.

Modifications: Redesign problem spaces and use of spaces to provide natural barriers to the occurrence of potential conflict. As an example, where congestion and conflict are likely to occur when classes are entering and leaving a cafeteria at the the same time using the same entrance, separate the entrance and exit, so that different traffic routes are utilized for moving from and returning to instructional areas.

Clear Borders: Provide clearly defined borders for controlled space.

Proper design and use of physical space can affect human decisions and behavior. Successful application of these seven principles can enable the creation of a welcoming educational setting that has by products of improved safety, productivity, and loss prevention. 

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HEALTH AND LIFE SAFETY

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1. Hazardous entrances off main thoroughfares should be avoided. If possible, lanes into and out of a campus should be separated by a landscaped median. 
2. Auto and bus traffic should be separated upon entry onto school property. 
3. Landscaping, entries, screen walls, or building corners that block the vision of drivers entering or leaving school property should be avoided.
4. To decrease potential hazards to pedestrian traffic, bus parking should not be located so that buses have to back up to turn or park, nor should buses be parked in double rows.
5. Long, straight layouts for parking lots, especially those used by students, should be avoided in order to reduce vehicle speeds and lower risk to pedestrians. Traffic control devices, such as speed bumps, can greatly reduce the potential for high-speed vehicular activity. Raised sidewalks can double as speed bumps where pedestrian traffic merits. 
6. Unloading areas for students should not be located so that children have to negotiate traffic. 
7. Pedestrian traffic patterns in areas of vehicular traffic should be designed to minimize potential risks. Where students must cross drives, raised sidewalks should double as speed bumps and traffic should be one-way only.
8. Drives that completely encircle a building or which have to be crossed when moving between buildings or to playgrounds or athletic fields are hazardous and should be avoided.
9. Adequate campus access and circulation for emergency service personnel and vehicles should be ensured. Fire department vehicle access lanes that extend beyond parking lots or service drives should be avoided, due to potential hazards to pedestrians. If access lanes are required by local code, they should be constructed as wide sidewalks or grassed hardened surfaces. Vehicular access should be over the curb, rather than via curb cuts that could encourage unauthorized use. 
10. Avoid locating facilities near electric power transmission line easements that cross or border school property. All facilities and site functions (except drives) should observe the following minimum clearances:
11. Noise levels that are generated by on-site mechanical equipment or nearby industries or transportation systems can interfere with communication or create a hazard to hearing and should be avoided. 
12. To reduce potential injury from industrial accidents, avoid locating schools near industries that utilize hazardous materials or processes or that generate hazardous by-products or discharges. 
13. Pre-kindergarten and kindergarten classes should have shared play areas separate from areas for older children. To avoid trapping children during emergency egress from buildings, perimeter walls or fences may not exceed 32 inches in height if gates are lockable.
14. Playground equipment with sharp edges, rough surfaces, or hazardous projections that may entangle clothing or cause injury should be avoided.

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SCHOOL CLIMATE AND ORDER

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1. Edges of school property can be defined with appropriate tree plantings and other landscaping elements. Careful design can maintain ample sight lines for effective surveillance. In urban settings where fences are used to border property, such plantings can soften edges while communicating to the public the message of privacy. Uninviting neighborhood development can be screened and intrusive noise softened, while discouraging unwanted visitors. In more rural settings, landscaping can be used to create visual lines that define boundaries without the use of fences. 

Tree canopies should be maintained at a minimum height of eight feet and hedges should be kept low enough not to provide places where people can hide. Landscaping should never prevent visual access into school property.
2.  A less stressful, healthier, and safer school environment can be achieved through thoughtful, well-designed landscaping. Trees can provide shade and protection from the wind to people and structures, and act as visual and noise buffers. Large tree canopies have a tremendous capacity to absorb high-speed wind energy from hurricanes and other storms. Absorption of high decibel levels of noise before it reaches the hub of the school campus makes verbal communication and surveillance easier.

Tree species that will resist winds should be selected. Species that could split off in a storm causing additional hazards, should be avoided.
3. Landscaping can serve to control and direct traffic just as well as walls or fences. Trees lining sidewalks or drives can give natural direction to pedestrian and vehicular traffic, while limiting or denying access to identified sections of the campus.
4. Covered walkways between buildings should be bordered by low shrubs and hedges, not to exceed 18 inches in height. Taller hedges should be placed and maintained in such a way as to prevent someone from hiding behind them.
5.  Shaded areas should be provided for students waiting for buses, in order to offer protection from undesirable climate or weather.
6.  Walkways and corridors that serve student drop-off areas should be wide enough to accommodate peak periods of use and reduce the unwanted effects of crowding.
7. Vehicular routes and parking areas should be in visual proximity to strategic sections of buildings, such as administration and classrooms, and should be adequately lit using vandal-proof lighting..
8. If two entries to a campus are needed, they should be close enough to each other to allow one individual to monitor both.
9. To reduce the possibility of vandalism and other undesirable behavior, avoid the use of loose gravel or crushed rock for surfacing.
10. Outdoor facilities, such as athletics or recreational fields, should be organized around a single axis to facilitate immediate visual surveillance of the entire area. School buildings placed on higher elevations than such facilities provide better opportunities for observation. On flat sites, vantage points should be identified or constructed to allow unobstructed visual surveillance.
11.  Signs should have large lettering, bold graphics, simple directions, and be well lit. In order that signs not provide hiding places for people, a sign can be raised high enough off the ground to expose the feet of a person hiding behind it.
12. Bicycle racks should be located in highly visible areas near a main entry or parking area but with clear separation from vehicular traffic.
13.  Where walls project, dark areas where people can hide are created. The planting of low hedges and the provision of nearby windows or recessed exterior lighting can reduce the improper use of such spaces.
14.  Walls in graffiti-prone locations should be of a material and finish that can repel graffiti or tolerate repeated cleanings.
15. Screen walls of metal or decorative blocks should provide no footholds, and the top three to four feet nearest the roof should be smooth and constructed in a manner to deter someone's ability to climb the structure.
16.  Exterior mechanical equipment enclosures should utilize designs and materials that make climbing difficult and provide side protection from thrown projectiles. Access doors should be solid, with concealed hinges and deadbolt locking.
17.  Dumpsters should be secured and enclosed to prevent persons from climbing inside to play or hide. Eight-foot-high screen walls, constructed to minimize climbing, should surround three sides. Any gate should be lockable and should provide visual access to the inside of the enclosure.

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CIRCULATION

1.
Exterior covered walkways should be designed to prevent access to adjoining windows, roofs, or other upper-level areas, and to promote adequate illumination and visual surveillance. Support columns should be made of a smooth difficult-to-climb material. Trees should be planted away from buildings and covered walkways to prevent access to such structures. "T" connections should be provided at entries to avoid creating building niches and to provide clear sight lines and circulation paths unobstructed by doors or loitering students.
2.
The main point of entry should be at the front of school buildings and should provide a safe, well-lighted, protected shelter for those entering the building. Sufficient windows and glazed doors should be provided to facilitate visual surveillance from strategic areas, such as administration or the visitor reception desk. 

Secondary entries should be recessed for protection from the weather, but should not provide places for people to hide. Completely hidden alcoves that shield doors and stairs from weather can also serve as concealed areas for untoward activity. Visibility into alcoves can be enhanced by the use of chamfered wall corners and adequate glazing and lighting. 
3.
Enclosed exterior courtyards should permit visual supervision by one individual.
4.
Corridors should be broad and well lighted, with no projections. Sudden 90-degree turns and narrow hallways should be avoided. Smoother traffic flow and better visibility should be provided through the use of chamfered wall corners. 
5.
Door niches on hallways should be chamfered and wide enough to provide clear lines of sight down hallways. Windows should be provided in or near classroom doors to allow staff to monitor hall traffic. 
6.
Alcoves along corridors for locating items such as lockers, vending machines, trash containers, and water coolers should be avoided, in order to eliminate difficult-to-supervise hiding places or spaces that promote undesirable activity. Such items should be either low profile in design or mounted flush with corridor walls. Lockers, which are single height, as opposed to an over-and-under configuration, reduce undesirable crowding during periods of heavy congestion.
7.
 Stairs should be well lighted. Enclosed stairwells should have electronic surveillance equipment to provide motion detection at main access points and on landings. The entire area under all stairs should be enclosed and unavailable for any use. 
8.
 Stair handrails should be constructed so as to provide visual access from either side of the stairs. (Solid handrails can provide hiding places on stairs and landings.) Handrails should be designed to discourage sliding on them, and horizontal rails should incorporate vertical supports that discourage climbing. 
9.
 Risers should be enclosed on the sides to prevent persons from grabbing the ankles of others using the stairs. 
10.
 Fixed metal detectors can greatly reduce the incidence of weapons being brought into the school building. A modest, inconspicuous detector should help avoid bringing attention to the problem and the process. 
11.
 Access to elevators should be limited to authorized individuals. Elevators should be located in lobbies or other areas with higher-than-normal natural surveillance. A five-foot-deep landing area should minimize obstruction of student traffic. Video surveillance of and into elevators can significantly deter criminal or other undesirable activity. 
12.
 Water fountains and toilet rooms should be located in gathering areas that are typically monitored.
13.
Vending machines should be located adjacent to or inside cafeterias or other well-monitored spaces, rather than in isolated areas. Machines should be mounted or caged to reduce chance of vandalism and as well opportunity for units to be turned over.
14. 
Standpipe cabinets and fire extinguishers in main corridors should be flush mounted. 
15.
 Lighting should be located so as to minimize the creation of dark or shadowed recesses that might be conducive to undesired activity. 
16.
 Circulation/common areas should be designed and sized to avoid overcrowding during times of peak congestions. Additionally, surveillance by staff and technology means should be considered in the design.
17.
 Arenas both inside and outside should be constructed in a manner to allow for orderly controlled evacuation in the event of emergency, be equipped with appropriate lighting and facilities and utilities which could be used in the event area should become a shelter or safe haven. 

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