How the Leicestershire Academies Insurance Scheme is enabling schools to tackle flood risk proactively
Covering schools across Leicestershire and Rutland, UK the Academies Insurance Scheme has adopted Previsico to strengthen flood risk insight across its school estate.
We’re not interested in simply purchasing insurance and hoping for the best. We want to be proactive. We’re particularly interested in starting with a single school as a pilot, so we can support them in developing and refining their flood response procedures.
The Leicestershire Academies Insurance Scheme covers 118 schools, including both elementary and high schools across the wider Leicestershire and Rutland area. Running for over 10 years, the scheme supports schools with risk management and provides insurance cover for a diverse range of building types, from Victorian-era structures and 1960s stock to modern buildings with contemporary extensions.
The scheme is managed by a dedicated team at Leicestershire County Council, who act as the primary liaison between participating schools and Zurich Municipal.
Challenges
During their initial risk assessment work with Zurich, 10 schools were flagged as having increased flood risk. Since the Leicestershire Academy Schools Trust form part of Leicestershire County Council, they have a strong duty of care to minimize educational disruption. There was a significant flood event in the Great Glen area in 2021, which resulted in a nearby assisted living facility suffering £500,000 in damages. Located nearby was St Cuthbert’s Primary School which, although not directly impacted in this instance, was highlighted as a potential risk due to its location.
“We’ve seen how devastating it can be, in 2018, an elementary school suffered severe weather damage, and it took years to rebuild. The impact on children’s education can be profound.” James Colford, Head of Insurance, Leicestershire Academies Insurance Scheme.
Solution
After being introduced to Previsico through their insurer, Zurich Municipal, the Leicester Academies Insurance Scheme began exploring how the service could support flood-impacted sites.
The team are the first responders to the alerts issued by Previsico. They engage a third-party provider to carry out the initial assessment and mitigation. “We’re not interested in simply purchasing insurance and hoping for the best, we want to be proactive.” said Mr Colford.
The team recognizes the critical importance of having clear flood risk assessments and response plans in place.
“We’re particularly interested in starting with a single school as a pilot, so we can support them in developing and refining their flood response procedures.” he added.
Ultimately, their goal is clear: to minimize disruption, prevent losses, and empower schools to take a proactive approach to flood resilience.
Benefits
- Minimizes educational disruption, ensures schools remain operational during and after flood events, protecting children’s access to consistent education.
- Supports schools in developing and implementing effective flood action plans and response processes.
- Reduces financial losses, by preventing costly damage to buildings, equipment, and resources through early warning systems and mitigation measures.
- Lower insurance costs - helps reduce claims, potentially lowering premiums across the insurance scheme.
- Helps with safety measures as timely alerts and responses keeps everyone clear on how to react to extreme weather events.
- Enables focused deployment of emergency and maintenance teams to high-risk sites, improving efficiency.
- Builds Long-Term Resilience and encourages a culture of preparedness and risk awareness within school communities and local authorities.