by Dakota Murphey
Whether you’re managing a residential property, hotel, serviced apartment complex or anywhere with communal facilities, managing a swimming pool is far from an easy job. Installing and maintaining a pool is one thing, but facility managers have a whole host of complex safety procedures and security measures to adhere to every day, from unplanned events and expenses to implementing long-term safety policies.
The challenge of ensuring end-to-end swimming pool safety becomes even more pronounced when standard and traditional key management systems expose security flaws.
This short guide explores how facility managers can ensure better all-around swimming pool security and safety.
The basics of pool safety and security
Surprisingly, the UK has no specific legislation for domestic pool safety equipment, devices or enclosures. That said, facility managers overseeing shared residential or commercial pools still carry a significant duty of care, particularly if children have access to the shared facilities. Children can drown in water depths as low as a couple of centimetres, which illustrates just how important pool safety is, and how it should be viewed as more than a basic tick-box exercise.
The four pillars of pool safety are:
- Safety covers - these must withstand the weight of a 100kg adult while preventing young children from accessing the pool or getting beneath the cover.
- Enclosures - glass pool covers increase pool temperature but must be either retractable, fixed, telescopic or sliding, with a robust locking system. Depending on the size, these enclosures may require planning permission.
- Perimeter fencing - safety fencing must measure at least 1.1 metres high, be lockable and childproof, and be erected at least 1 metre from the pool edge.
- Alarm systems - whether using an infrared detector or an underwater or floating sensor alarm, this should be activated 24/7 (except when the pool is in use), detect any falls in the water, time-stamp recent uses, and sound the alert without fail.
Each of these facets serves a specific purpose in creating a strong layer of protection. Accredited swimming pool design and installation company Compass Pools affirm the importance of protective pool safety, highlighting that “Proactive safety measures, combined with vigilant supervision, are essential for preventing accidents and ensuring a safe swimming environment for everyone.”
Similarly, they provide guidance on a subject often debated: the necessary space required surrounding a pool. Their recommended clearance allowance of 1.5 metres, around the whole pool perimeter, allows for optimal access for routine maintenance together with enough space during emergencies. Facilities managers should remain mindful of this and consider additional clearance wherever possible, so that unrestricted access, when the time calls for it, will further ensure pool safety.
Ongoing operational difficulties
In any incumbent facility, regardless of foot traffic and access restrictions, pool areas require multiple access points. From main entrances and gates to emergency exits, storage rooms, and even adjoining offices, each pool will require access for various people, as well as facility management, such as lifeguards, cleaners, maintenance contractors, fitness instructors, and emergency services, to name a few.
This creates a situation where key management becomes vital. For instance, a building manager may need to grant cleaning staff access in the early hours, maintenance contractors at specific times, and fitness instructors in the afternoon. Managing access using one or two sets of physical keys can become cumbersome and create risk scenarios, especially if they are lost. If the pool is accessible due to unlocked doors, it poses a risk to expensive unsupervised equipment, or if they are locked and access can’t be granted, locks will need to be changed and replaced, which can be expensive.
What’s more, pool alarms, despite their benefits, become meaningless if facility managers can’t access them or correlate events with legitimate, approved personnel access. It’s also frustrating and disruptive if pool alarms trigger in the dead of night, and becomes a headache for facility personnel if they can’t tie access to a legitimate repair or unauthorised access.
Alarms must operate 24/7 (except during authorised use) continue to emit signals even during power failures, and maintain detailed, time-verified logs. Since pool enclosures and fencing must be fitted with secure, childproof locking systems, traditional key management does the opposite of expediting the process of maintenance.
Digital key solutions for improved pool safety
Digital key management systems like Keyzapp give facility managers more control and oversight over pool security measures. With the right solution, facility managers can:
- Track who has a key at any given time
- Receive real-time alerts if a key isn’t returned on time
- Centralise oversight across single or multiple buildings with a multitude of keys
- Trigger real-time notifications and alerts to suspicious activity and patterns
- Obtain detailed, time-stamped reports and access logs to prove compliance with a facility’s access control and security policies
- Correlate events with access logs following alarm triggers
By helping facilities better manage their physical keys, Keyzapp integrates with existing pool safety procedures and gives facility managers more power to uphold proper security etiquette across their estate. Facility managers gain the tools to demonstrate compliance, reduce liability exposure, and enhance the overall safety and security of their pool facilities.
For property managers, estate agents, and building managers, the message is clear: pool safety extends far beyond physical boundaries, locked doors and alarms. True security requires demonstrable access control that matches modern innovation with safe, round-the-clock access for approved people, while minimising risk exposure to unauthorised and opportunistic people.
Book a demo of Keyzapp today and discover how you can improve security across your infrastructure without any lost or stolen key worries ever again.