CLEAPSS Licensing

We provide schools the facility to purchase at a discounted price a CLEAPSS (Consortium of Local Education Authority Provision for Science Services) licence, which provides general support in the field of science and technology.

This includes information, advice and training on:

• Practical science
• Health and safety
• Risk assessment
• Sources and use of chemicals
• Living organisms and equipment
• Laboratory design & practice
• Job roles of technicians
• Limited support and advice may also be offered for technology, art and design and other practical subjects.

Benefits

Enfield Council manages the arrangements for purchasing on behalf of schools and in doing so attracts a discount for purchasing.

Options

• Purchase of CLEAPSS annual licenses
• Purchase of the Radiation Protection Advice service membership

The latter includes:

• The service of a Radiation Protection Officer to act as an intermediary between the education establishment and CLEAPSS
• A consultant to audit Radiation Protection arrangements once every 3 years
• Support & information in regard to radiation queries beyond the scope of your organisation’s Radiation Protection Supervisor

CLEAPSS Membership

This section is what the schools would purchase through the Schools Traded Services for the CLEAPSS membership and describes what the membership includes.

CLEAPSS membership is predominantly purchased by employers on behalf of their employees, to support the teaching of practical work in science, D&T and art including the provision of a cost-effective way for the employer to discharge its duties under the 1974 Health &Safety at work act in these subject areas, namely, to provide safety guidance and model risk assessments for any hazardous activities carried out by its employees. CLEAPSS members who do not have employees

directly engaged in working in schools and colleges usually join CLEAPSS in order to ensure that their products and services are provided in a way that matches what is expected by employers in schools and colleges.

RPA Services (Radiation Protection Advice)

The below explains how the Radiation Protection Service works for schools holding radioactive sources and how the Schools Health & Safety Team are able to assist.

Many secondary schools hold relatively low activity radioactive sources which they use to teach parts of the curriculum in science and/or GCSE, A-level Physics. The Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017 (IRR17) places demands on employers, in particular, the duty for the employer, as a radiation employer, to appoint an appropriately qualified Radiation Protection Adviser (RPA).

CLEAPSS is concerned that the cost of accessing this advice could lead schools to dispose of their radioactive sources and resort to videos and simulations, at a time when radioactivity is a topic with enormous relevance to society and the future lives of pupils. To combat this and help ensure radioactivity remains a practical part of the school curriculum for all pupils, CLEAPSS provides a low-cost route to accessing RPA advice which is available through brokering organisations, often local authorities such as Enfield. 

Visits/inspections are carried out by a Radiation Protection Officer (RPO) who is an employee of the local authority.  The RPO will periodically check that the science department is storing and managing their radioactive sources according to the guidance in L093 (Managing, storing, and handling radioactive materials guidance), and that their records are in place.