Schools, colleges and universities are designed to be safe spaces for learning and growth. Unfortunately, in many cases across Western Canada, ongoing education facility security concerns can often be a distraction.

Whether it is the theft of campus property, an intrusion of an unauthorized person, vandalism or a hate crime, criminals and vandals are increasingly choosing education institutions as their targets.

That doesn’t mean, however, that you should let the criminals win. By introducing innovative new security technologies onto your facility, partnering with a security expert, and following some simple steps, your school, college or university can focus on what matters - education.

To help, here are three security tips to help you keep your students, staff and assets safe.

1 - Use verified video

A verified security system is simply the best way to prevent crime at your education institute, and to also ensure a quick police response if the worst was to happen. At Sonitrol Western Canada, for example, every single alarm is verified before it is sent to the emergency services.

False alarms are significantly reduced with verified alarms. This is because crimes in progress are watched by our central monitoring operators, who are then able to alert the police in real-time and give them information on exactly what is happening on the premises of your education facility.

This ability to verify alarms in an efficient manner means Sonitrol has the highest apprehension rate (over 175,000) and the lowest false alarm rates (less than 3%) in the security industry.

Because of this, police respond to Sonitrol alarms significantly quicker than traditional alarms - a time of just 3.5 minutes compared to the 45 minutes of conventional CCTV alarms.

2 - Install managed access control

Ever wondered how you can stop unauthorized people gaining access to particular areas of your school? Consider installing managed access control. In fact, controlling and monitoring people entering and exiting buildings and sensitive areas is becoming critical to education security.

A managed access control system will allow educators and administrators at your education institute to limit access to designated areas and high-value facilities. This will deter criminals from stealing equipment and materials.

3 - Are you prepared for a fire?

Fire can result in serious loss and damage for your education facility, but it can easily be avoided through the implementation of a verified fire detection system.

By installing a fire detection solution that includes round-the-clock monitoring of smoke and heat detectors, a sprinkler system, temperature monitoring and pull stations, your education institute will be safe from the serious damage that can result from a fire.

How can Sonitrol Western Canada help?

For more than 50 years, Sonitrol Western Canada has been providing comprehensive security systems for the educational community, becoming one of the largest providers of security systems to schools in North America.

This is because we have developed security programs that address the unique needs of schools, colleges and universities. Our proprietary technology integrates seamlessly with a range of security features including verified video, video surveillance, audio detection, managed access control, fire detection and much more.

These world-class technologies result in:

• Fast police response times (an average of 3-4 minutes compared to the 20 minutes of traditional CCTV).
• Significantly lower false alarm rates.
• Consistently high rate of apprehension in the event of an intrusion.

Are you looking for an innovative and state-of-the-art security solution to protect your education institute from crime in Western Canada? Contact the Sonitrol Western Canada team of experts today.