Practical emergency planning for schools & colleges

Almost all schools and further education colleges fall under the Standard Tier, even if more than 800 people are on site. The government has confirmed that education settings below higher education level are covered by proportionate, procedural requirements only. The focus is on having clear plans and procedures - such as lockdown, evacuation and communication arrangements - rather than introducing new physical security measures. The Enhanced Tier applies where 800 or more members of the public could reasonably be expected at one time, such as large public events or higher education institutions that meet that threshold. If a school or college hosts a large public event organised by a third party, responsibility would generally be shared: the event organiser must meet Enhanced Tier requirements for the event, while the school or trust must cooperate and ensure the site’s security arrangements are appropriate. In short, everyday school and further education operations remain Standard Tier, while higher education settings and large public events may fall under the Enhanced Tier.

While schools and colleges are not typical targets, the UK’s national threat level is “substantial”, meaning a terrorist attack is considered likely. These settings operate to predictable routines - fixed start and finish times, regular deliveries and consistent patterns of movement - which can make them more vulnerable to those looking to exploit familiarity or disrupt daily life. The aim of terrorism is to create fear and destabilise communities, and an incident involving a school or college would have a significant emotional and social impact, even if it were not necessarily the intended target. Improving counter-terrorism preparedness complements Keeping Children Safe in Education and wider safeguarding duties, helping schools and colleges protect pupils, staff and visitors while also strengthening their ability to respond to other emergencies, criminal threats or local incidents.

Yes. Martyn’s Law and DfE guidance expect schools to have documented, tested plans for all major emergency procedures. CTprepare helps you meet those expectations with clear, practical guidance and online questionnaires to create compliant documents.

No. It produces customised procedures based on your school’s size, site layout and staffing. Each plan reflects your setting, not a generic checklist.

DfE guidance recommends an annual review, and CTprepare sends reminders so you never miss it. You can also log drills and lessons learned directly into the system.

No. The platform is simple and step-by-step. It also generates crib sheets that help staff know exactly what to do in a real incident.

Yes. CTprepare stores drill logs, training records and procedures in one place, making it easy to share evidence during audits, inspections or governor meetings.

CTprepare highlights gaps like this and encourages schools to start. It provides the framework for recording drills once you put them in place.

No. It complements it. Schools should still follow advice from local safeguarding teams, police and local authority officers. CTprepare makes sure your internal plans are clear and consistent.

Yes. CTprepare is built with security and data protection at its core. All information is stored securely in line with UK GDPR requirements, and schools remain in control of their own data. Access is role-based so only authorised staff can view or update records.

Yes. CTprepare can be used across Multi Academy Trusts. Each school needs to sign up and will get its own tailored plans and drill logs, while MAT leaders can see procedures and evidence across all their schools.