School Grounds Maintenance Checklist

On a school site, safeguarding shapes the whole contract. Specify whether operatives need DBS checks, how they sign in and are supervised, and the rule that powered equipment is kept clear of pupils. A contractor working on school grounds needs to understand and follow the school’s safeguarding policy, not just turn up and cut grass.

Set out the access arrangements clearly: gates, secure boundaries, vehicle movement around drop-off times, and which areas are off-limits during the school day. The more precisely access and supervision are defined up front, the less disruption the works cause once term is in full swing.

Sports turf is a specialist task with its own regime — cutting heights, line marking, aeration and seasonal renovation — distinct from amenity grass. If the school depends on its pitches for PE and fixtures, set the pitch works out separately, with their own standards and seasonal timing, rather than treating them as ordinary grass cutting.

Play areas and informal grass need a presentation and safety standard too: regular cutting, clearance of debris and litter, and checks that surfaces and margins stay safe for play. Specify how quickly hazards are cleared, because on a school site a presentation lapse can quickly become a safety issue.

Specify how visits are evidenced — dated records and photographs where presentation needs demonstrating — and who in the school receives them. Trusts and governing bodies often need records they can hand on, so agree the reporting format up front rather than accepting whatever the contractor happens to produce.

Confirm the contractor’s cover and competence: public and employer’s liability insurance, method statements and risk assessments, a recognised safety accreditation such as CHAS Advanced, and DBS checks where required. Set a review point — a walk-round or contract meeting — so standards, safeguarding and the holiday schedule are checked against the specification across the year.