Net2 PaxLock Provides an Easy Wireless Security Solution for Hazelwick School

27 May 2014

Hazelwick School is a vibrant, large comprehensive secondary school based in Crawley, West Sussex. Established in 1953, the school is highly regarded both academically and socially, with a strong sense of community and outstanding quality of teaching.

At the heart of the school is a caring and cohesive learning environment where all students are made to feel safe, happy and valued. With the pupil population growing to almost 2,000 in recent years, security has become an increasingly important contributor to maintaining pupils’ happiness and wellbeing.

Steve Smith, Network Manager at Hazelwick School says: “As the school has developed and grown, we needed a well-rounded security solution to control the flow of pupils, protect sensitive areas and assure the safety of expensive school equipment.”

Since 2012, Vistec Systems Ltd have worked closely with Hazelwick School, providing advice and solutions on improving security to protect students, assets and give them peace of mind.

Carl Bell, Sales Manager at Vistec Systems Ltd, says: “Hazelwick School approached us needing an access control system to address multiple security issues across five of the school buildings. As regular installers of Paxton, we knew that we could provide a networked access control system, which suited the modern feel and look of the school, but was still robust and low cost.”

Vistec Systems specified Net2 PaxLock, Paxton’s networked access control solution in a door handle. Net2 PaxLock electronically controls access to doors around a site, from a central PC, with easy to use software. The wireless unit easily replaced door handles on over 60 doors across five buildings; lower, middle and upper schools, the technology block and Learning Resource Centre.

Net2 PaxLock uses Paxton’s low power and secure wireless technology to communicate to the server PC. The battery powered unit is a simple way to secure and control access in and around a building and can be installed quickly, as it doesn’t require mains power.

Carl says: “Each door handle could be fitted in less than 10 minutes, which is useful on a large installation like Hazelwick School. It made the job a lot faster for us and minimised disruption to the customer, as the whole job was completed in only three weeks.”

Net2 PaxLock now protects expensive equipment in specialist IT areas, music practice rooms and science and technology blocks. With recent investment made into providing high-quality equipment to pupils in these curriculum areas, it was a requirement to ensure that students are only allowed access when permitted by school staff.

Steve says: “As well as protecting expensive school equipment, Net2 PaxLock also ensures that sensitive information in areas such as the student counsellor block, are secure and confidential. We also have peace of mind from a practical health and safety angle, as pupils only have access to potentially dangerous chemicals in the science block at allocated and supervised times.”

Net2 PaxLock also works seamlessly with Paxton’s Net2 access control software. Vistec showed Steve how to use the timezone feature in Net2 software to control pupil traffic, to only open doors at specific periods of the day. Pupils and parents can now come and go freely during mornings, breaks and home time slots, whilst the school is secured automatically outside of these free access times. This means that school staff don’t have to be present to open and close the required doors during these times, leaving them free for other tasks.

The school is very happy with the solution provided by Vistec Systems. Steve is making plans to expand the Net2 system next year, standardising all doors with Net2 PaxLock throughout the rest of the school.

Steve says: “Choosing a wireless security system has made a potentially time consuming and expensive project much simpler and has helped us to meet budget requirements. Net2 PaxLock requires minimal maintenance and has given staff, pupils and parents peace of mind that Hazelwick School is providing a safe and happy learning environment.”