Schools: Fire Prevention

Matthew Taylor
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many schools in England have sprinkler systems installed;

(2) what percentage of fires in schools were started deliberately in each of the last five years;

(3) what estimate he has made of the cost of the effects of arson to schools in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight
The Department does not have data on how many schools have sprinklers installed. However, we understand from insurers that nearly 300 schools in the United Kingdom as a whole have sprinkler systems fitted.

With regard to statistics on school fires and arson, the latest figures we have from the Department for Communities and Local Government covering England and Wales are for 2000-04, with those for 2005 being provisional.

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|Year|Number of fires|Total costs (£ million)|Arson (percentage)|
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|2000|1,275          |45                     |63                |
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|2001|1,529          |67                     |58                |
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|2002|1,332          |67                     |55                |
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|2003|1,313          |61                     |60                |
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|2004|1,291          |52                     |56                |
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|2005|1,166          |n/a                    |45                |
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These costs are rounded to the nearest £1 million and cover property damage and the costs of the fire and rescue services attending the fires. They do not include the consequential costs of, for instance, providing alternative accommodation when need, or disruption to education. However, these costs are taken account of in the fire risk assessment tool which I launched on 26 February. This provides clear guidance on when sprinklers should be installed, and our presumption is that all new schools will have them fitted.