Gate Safe, the Kent-based charity dedicated to improving gate safety is ramping up its Safe School Gates campaign, kicking off 2026 with a Westminster Roundtable hosted by Sojan Joseph MP for Ashford, Hawkinge and the Villages.
The meeting held at Portcullis House, London brought together key stakeholders to identify solutions to put a stop to serious gate accidents in schools, following Gate Safe survey activity which indicates that there could be as many as over 24,000 schools with unsafe gates in England. When compared to the 232 schools affected by RAAC this highlights the severity of the issue since many of these gates are automated – and as such classed as machines – capable of inflicting serious injury or worse if they are not installed or maintained correctly.
The meeting, chaired by Gate Safe founder Richard Jackson OBE, was attended by delegates representing the following organisations:
- HSE (Health and Safety Executive)
- Secured by Design (official police security initiative)
- Zurich Insurance (trusted insurance partner to thousands of schools)
- SAFed (Safety Assessment Federation)
- ECA (Electrical Contractors’ Association
In addition, senior personnel from companies responsible for manufacturing and installing automated and manual gates were present.
Key points for discussion included:
- A move towards ensuring all new installations comply with the law which states that all gates / machines should be safe – and to bring historic installations up to the required safety standards
- The supply of all manual and automated swing gates with three hinges as is required by the British Standards to avoid the growing number of falling gate accidents. A third hinge or tether should be retrofitted to any existing installations which are not compliant
- Recognition of the legal requirement to have all automated gates maintained a minimum of every six months by a suitably trained and competent professional
- Improved policing of school gates which could extend to the need for building regulations to be applied to automated gates and Ofsted inspections to incorporate more detailed requirements for automated (and manual) gates
- Better understanding amongst schools, insurance and inspection industry of the requirements for a safe and legally compliant gate
Delegates attending the roundtable were united in their commitment to collaborate with Gate Safe to implement a sustained campaign of activity. Sojan Joseph will be making a formal approach to the Department for Education to enlist further support from the government on the matter of gate safety.
Richard Jackson OBE commented, “Today’s meeting has been a resounding success, providing the opportunity for Gate Safe to bring the issue of gate safety in schools to the top of the agenda. We are confident that with the support of the delegates who attended the roundtable, we can move forward to ensure a better standard of safety for gates and barriers installed in the school environment – an environment which parents send their children to in the belief that they will be safeguarded and not exposed to unnecessary risks.”
