Conditions of Hire

CONDITIONS OF HIRE SAMUEL CODY SCHOOL

1 ‘School’ means Samuel Cody School. ‘County Council’ means Hampshire County Council

2 Acceptance of Conditions

The hiring of accommodation/facilities/premises is permitted only on the conditions outlined in the following regulations. Acceptance of the Hire Agreement is deemed to be acceptance of these conditions.

3 Compliance with Conditions

The Hirer (the person or body to whom the hire is granted) shall be responsible for compliance with these conditions.

4 Applications

Applications for the hire of premises should normally be made at least three weeks in advance. In general, reservations will not be accepted for dates more than twelve months in advance, except for special events such as those needing extensive preparations.

5 The Hirer shall satisfy himself that the facilities to be hired are suitable for his purposes.

6 The use of the premises must not interfere with the proper working of the School or impair its efficiency. In particular the Hirer acknowledges that it will not have exclusive use of the site.

7 Activities Hall/Sports Hall Only suitable footwear should be worn in the Gymnasium or Sports Hall. No school games equipment may be used without permission and gymnastic equipment can only be used when an adult with recognised qualifications for the proposed activity is personally supervising at all times. For safety reasons, this condition also applies to other activities with young people. For further guidance the Hirer should consult the regulations described in the HCC document ‘Safety in Physical Education’ available at the School.

8 Hard Court Multi-Use Games Areas

(i) These facilities should be used for their intended purposes only ie participation in formal and informal play and sport.

(ii) The hard court multi-use games areas shall be hired, together with access to toilets and changing accommodation at the School. The Hirer shall not have access to any other parts of the School.

(iii) The hard court multi-use games area may have indicative markings for sports like netball, basketball, tennis and small-sided football. No additional marks shall be made to the hard court areas by the Hirer.

(iv) Litter must be removed from the facility at the end of the hire session.

9 Use of Field

The School reserves the right to restrict use of the field to protect it during inclement weather; when damaged or under repair; when waterlogged; or to fit in with the School curriculum or School demands. Litter must be removed from the facility at the end of the hire session.

10 Catering facilities.

The Hirer must adhere to the hygiene and health and safety obligations set out by the school.

11 School equipment

No use may be made of apparatus such as stage fittings, pianos etc., without specific permission.

12 Fabric and fittings

The fabric and fittings (including electrical installations) and contents of the premises shall not be interfered with in any way. No treatment shall be given to prepare a floor for dancing and the wearing of stiletto heels is prohibited. Only authorised persons shall use steps or ladders. No nails or screws shall be driven into the walls, floors, ceilings, furniture or fittings, and no placards shall be affixed to any part of the premises. The School’s furniture (other than chairs in the hired accommodation) and equipment shall not be moved except by prior arrangement. Official exit ways must be kept clear at all times. Any alteration or addition to the School’s lighting or electrical heating systems is strictly forbidden, except with the written consent of the Headteacher. Consent may be subject to conditions, which the Hirer will be required to observe. The Hirer shall, at the end of the hire period, leave the accommodation in a reasonable tidy condition, all equipment being returned to the correct place of storage.

13 The Hirer is responsible for the safe guarding and safe keeping of all items belonging to the Hirer, its guests/delegates or third parties engaged by it. The School accepts no responsibility for such items.

14 Storage Storage facilities cannot usually be provided. When Hirers are permitted to leave equipment on the premises, they do so entirely at their own risk.

15 Hirer’s Property

Furniture and apparatus required may be brought on to the premises at the Hirer’s own risk. Hirers shall not bring on to the premises, without the prior consent of the governors, any article of an inflammable or explosive nature, nor any article producing an offensive smell, nor any other substance, apparatus, or article of a dangerous nature.

16 The Hirer shall indemnify the establishment and Hampshire County Council against all claims for damages, compensation and/or costs in respect of:- (i) Bodily injury or illness to Third Parties, and/or (ii) Damage to Third Party property caused by or arising out of or being incidental to the Hirer’s use of the premises.

17 The Hirer shall be responsible for loss or damage to the establishment’s premises and contents therein the property of the Hampshire County Council.

18 The Hirer shall affect adequate insurance in respect of the liabilities and the loss or damage referred to respectively in Conditions 15& 16 above. (See appendix following Conditions of Hire for explanatory notes on insurance).

19 Refusal of hire

The Governors may refuse an application to hire the premises if:- (a) The premises are required by the School (b) There has been any damage to the property or breach of these conditions during previous use of the premises by the hirer. (c) For any other reason the Governors deem it necessary or expedient to refuse the application. No compensation shall be payable by the Governors by reason of such a decision.

20 Cancellation by the Governors The School reserve the right to cancel any hiring without notice if:- (i) The accommodation will, due to circumstances outside their control, be unavailable for the hire period or (ii) The Hirer has failed to disclose material information concerning the proposed hiring, or (iii) There are reasonable grounds to conclude that the Conditions of Hire may be breached to a material extent In the event of (i), all hiring fees will be refunded to the Hirer, but the School shall have no further liability to the Hirer. In the event of (ii) and (iii), any refund of hiring fees shall be at the discretion of the School. Apart from exceptional circumstances, the governors will give at least four weeks’ notice to the hirer, should it become necessary to cancel or postpone a letting.

21 (i) Cancellation by the Hirer (Event Bookings) Once a booking is confirmed, the following will apply. £50 if cancelled 1 month after confirmation. £100 for cancellations within 3 months of hire. £250 for cancellations within 2 months of hire. The full fee will apply if cancelled within a month of hire (ii) Cancellation by the Hirer (Block Bookings) Once a booking form is submitted the hirer must give one months notice in writing if they wish to cancel the entire booking. It is at The Managers’ discretion to whether a group can cancel an individual session. If you do wish to cancel, please apply in writing 48hrs prior to your booking for The Manger to consider waivering the cost of a single session. 

22 Payment of Charges The Hirer shall pay the hiring fees, including any deposit, at the rates agreed and at times set out on the invoice.

23 (i) The Hirer acknowledges that in the event that the Hirer cancels the booking there will be a cancellation fee payable as set out in these conditions and any refund of monies already paid will be at the discretion of the School. (ii) All hire charges must be paid within 10 days of the invoice being issued or by the date stated on the invoice. This invoice will be issued at the end of each month for all the hires that have taken place in that month. (iii) The School reserve the right, on proper notification, to invoice the Hirer for any charges arising from excessive cleaning time incurred as a result of the Hirer failing to leave the accommodation in a reasonable condition, or for repair of the premises or equipment damaged by the Hirer, or resulting from the Hirer failing to vacate the premises by the time stipulated on the booking form. (iv) The Hirer shall pay at the time of booking a refundable deposit of £250 for event bookings, to be held by the Governors against costs unavoidably incurred as the result of insufficient notice of cancellation of booking, any damage caused by the Hirer, or additional cleaning required as a result of the premises not being left in a reasonably tidy condition. The proportion of the deposit to be retained will be decided by the Governors and their decision will be final. Any time accrued after what was booked will be charged at double the rate and deducted from deposit.

24 Statutory Requirements (i) All statutory requirements, including those relating to health and safety and public entertainments, must be strictly fulfilled by the Hirer. Film, music, dancing, indoor sporting events and stage events may be considered to be regulated entertainment and, as such, are licensable activities which require authorisation from the local licensing authority for all regulated entertainment, it is the Hirer’s responsibility to inform the local Licensing Authority and obtain the appropriate public, but also if tickets are offered to friends and neighbours or even if admission is free and open to all. (ii) No musical works in the repertoire of the Performing Rights Society may be performed in public on the premises unless the Hirer has obtained the permission of the society. No copyright material may be delivered or performed unless the consent of the owners of the copyright has been obtained by the Hirer. The Hirer must indemnify the school and the County Council against any action for breach of copyright.

25 Attendance and Behaviour (i) The Hirer shall ensure that the number of persons using the premises does not exceed that for which the application was made and approved. (ii) The Hirer shall be responsible for ensuring the preservation of good order for the full duration of the letting and until the premises are vacated. The Hirer shall at all times provide an adequate number of supervisors for any activity and those supervisors shall be present throughout the hiring period. The Hirer shall be liable for damage caused by unruly or inappropriate behaviour. (iii) It is the Hirer’s responsibility to ensure that all those attending are made aware of their responsibilities, and the County Council’s and Hirer’s insurance arrangements.

26 The School reserves the right to exclude individuals or companies that it considers undesirable or inappropriate. The Headteacher reserves the right to require a representative to be in attendance for the preservation of good order and safety and to recover from the Hirer any additional expenses incurred as a result of this condition. If the Headteacher’s representative considers the behaviour of the Hirer, its guest/delegates or third party contractors to be unreasonable, then the representative may cancel and/or terminate the event with immediate effect and the School shall not be obliged to refund any part of the Hire charge.

27 Alcohol In no circumstances shall alcoholic drinks be available at any function without prior written consent of the Governors. Application must be made on the booking form at the time the Hirer applies for the use of the premises. If permission is granted for alcoholic drinks to be sold it will be the responsibility of the Hirer to ensure all regulations are met. If the School agrees to the Hirer obtaining a Temporary Event Notice from the local licensing authority, the Hirer agrees to comply with all conditions and limitations attached to this Temporary Event Notice.

28. The School reserves the right to require sight of a Temporary Event Notice prior to the letting.

29. Gambling The premises may not be used for games of chance, other than bingo, unless specific permission has been granted by the governors.

30. Emergency Evacuation Procedures Hirers shall familiarise themselves with the fire precautions in force on the premises and with the means of evacuation in the event of a fire, bomb warning or any other threat to safety. The Hirer is responsible for ensuring that persons attending are made aware of the evacuation procedures. Fire and other exits must be kept clear at all times.

31. Smoking Samuel Cody School is a non-smoking campus.

32 Caretaker The caretaker is instructed by the Governors to ensure that the conditions of hire are fully complied with. All reasonable instructions given by the caretaker on duty must therefore be followed.

33 Use of the premises is limited to the accommodation hired and necessary facilities such as toilets. Car parking is permitted in designated areas at the premises subject to availability.

34 Right of access. The Governing Body and its agents reserve the right of access to the premises during the letting.

35 The Headteacher or his/her representative reserves the right to suspend or withdraw use of the school by an individual or group with immediate effect on the following grounds.

  • causing intentional damage to the school, its equipment or any personal belongings of other users
  • violent, threatening or abusive behaviour to a member of staff or other users
  • theft of any property belonging to the School or other users
  • disruptive behaviour which is interfering with the activities of others
  • behaviour which puts at risk the health, safety or well-being of others
  • Non compliance with or breach of licensing laws.
  • behaviour which is deemed to be offensive and/or results in complaints from users
  • refusal to follow reasonable directions from the caretaker or other members of the school’s staff
  • non-payment of school invoices
  • any other behaviour which is considered inappropriate to the smooth and efficient operation of the School, or against the interests of all users

Following the suspension, the user will be given reasons in writing and will be offered the opportunity to appeal to the Governing Body of the School, whose decision will be final.

36. The Hirer may not assign or sub-let the hire of the School

APPENDIX HIRER’S INSURANCE – INDEMNITY CLAUSE

In accordance with the terms of hiring it is customary to require persons/organisations to accept responsibility for damage to the premises and its equipment and for the Third Party claims involving injury to persons and/or damage to property.

A INJURY TO PERSONS OR PROPERTY

1 The Hirer shall indemnify the school and Hampshire County Council against all claims for damages, compensation and/or costs in respect of:

(i) bodily injury or illness to Third Parties, including the County Council’s servants and agents and/or

(ii) damage or loss to Third Party property caused by, or arising out of, or being incidental to the Hirer’s use of the premises.

2 The Hirer shall affect adequate insurance to cover this liability with a minimum limit of indemnity of  £10 million for commercial hirings except where otherwise agreed  £5 million for non-commercial hirings

B DAMAGE TO PREMISES AND EQUIPMENT

1 The Hirer shall be responsible for the loss of, or damage to the premises and contents therein, which is the property of the School and/or Hampshire County Council, except when loss or damage to the premises or contents are as a result of the negligence of the School or Hampshire County Council.

2 The Hirer shall affect adequate insurance to cover this liability with a minimum limit of indemnity of  £10 million for commercial hirings except where otherwise agreed £5 million for non-commercial hirings Hirers must produce evidence that the required insurance cover is in place at least 7 days before the event. NON-COMMERCIAL HIRERS Due to difficulties experienced by non commercial hirers in arranging Public Liability Insurance with a Limit of Indemnity of at least £5 million (the lowest limit acceptable for use of Hampshire County Council premises) the County Council has arranged for the following policy, and Hirers who cannot produce evidence of Public Liability insurance, must as a condition of the proposed hiring, take out the Hirer’s Insurance arranged by Hampshire County Council, (provided they do not fall within the definition of the exclusions listed below). HAMPSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL – ON BEHALF OF NON-COMMERCIAL INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANISATIONS HIRING COUNTY COUNCIL SCHOOLS, COMMUNITY COLLEGES, EDUCATION CENTRES AND OTHER HAMPSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL PROPERTIES OPERATIVE CLAUSE The indemnity will cover individual hirers for their legal liability for injury illness to third parties and/or loss/damage to their property, and loss or damage to the premises and contents hired, including such liability that may be imposed on the Hirer under the terms of the hiring agreement. LIMITATIONS For loss/damage caused other than by Fire or Explosion, cover is subject to an Excess of £100 Damage resulting from Fire or Explosion is limited to £5 million

EXCLUSIONS Political Meetings and Professional Entertainment Promotions Commercial, business or trade hiring

NOTE This is a public liability insurance policy. It does not provide cover for: Employers Liability – If the hirer has employees the hirer must provide this cover. Professional negligence of the hirer – if the hirer is providing a professional service, they must take out this cover for themselves. Personal Accident – cover for participants in the hirer’s activity where they have been injured as a result of a pure accident and there is no negligence on the part of the hirer.