Managing relationships with third parties using school facilities
A major part of successful community use arrangements is managing the relationship between the school and the third party. Schools with experience in sharing their facilities have highlighted a range of considerations that other schools may wish to plan for and discuss with the third-party user when setting up new agreements.
Scheduling cleaning
Schools are recommended to consider when their cleaning is scheduled, both during the week as well as any periodic cleaning (for example, over school holidays), and check that this does not conflict with proposed periods of community use.
Where necessary, schools are recommended to arrange cleaning to happen before or after scheduled periods of community use to ensure cleaning standards are kept and so both community use and school activities can run smoothly. Providing cleaning providers with early notice of any changes to the cleaning requirements will also assist in managing the process.
Access and keys
It is useful to clearly communicate with the third party what parts of the school they are entitled to access under the agreement, and their responsibility for any school keys they are given or borrowing.
Many schools find it useful to have a separate set of ‘hirer keys’ that are given to third party users, and that only allow access to certain areas of the school.
Where possible, it is recommended these keys provide access only to the designated area approved for community use, reducing the risk of having to re-key the entire school if keys are lost. Schools are encouraged to keep a key register for hirers to sign keys out and in. This allows schools to track when keys are being used by community groups. Recording the phone number of the person who took the keys can be useful if tracking down the keys is needed. Schools that pursue this may also want to consider including a fee for replacement keys in the hire or license agreement if they are lost.
Schools are also responsible for ensuring that any alarms for school buildings, and any associated procedures for activating or deactivating alarms have been clearly communicated to community groups. It is also recommended to advise hirers that if they fail to correctly disarm the alarm system on arrival, they may be liable for significant costs. False activations can result in a security guard being dispatched, and on some occasions, police attendance.
Expectations of use: packing up, rubbish and equipment
When setting up an agreement, schools are encouraged to highlight to the third party user the clause on expectations for shared use of equipment and space. Schools are encouraged to then outline the consequences of failing to meet these expectations.
Schools may wish to limit access to storage areas and equipment to avoid this getting confused with hirers' equipment – for example, school sports equipment.
Showing third parties where to dispose of rubbish and setting expectations for leaving facilities rubbish free can help to set expectations for appropriate use.
Templates are available for signage relating to rubbish and equipment. See Respectful use of school signage on the Resources tab.
Reviewed 13 April 2026