Out of school hours gas use

What is out of hours usage?

Out of hours gas use is the amount of gas used when the school is closed - overnight, at weekends and during the holidays. Reducing out of hours gas use is one of the easiest, and cheapest ways of saving lots of energy.

Getting the school opening hours right on your account

The analysis within this page is based on the school opening hours set for your school. It is best to set these to be as accurate as you can so that you receive appropriate advice.

We advise that opening hours are set for when the school is fully operational - the majority of staff and pupils are in the school. There will be periods of time before and after school when a number of pupils are in breakfast or after school clubs and teachers are working, but energy needs will be considerably lower at these times. The default settings when a school is activated on Energy Sparks are 08:50 - 15:20. 

Setting opening and closing times far outside these times if the school is not fully operational means that your school might look like it is managing its energy better than it actually is. This means that school comparisons will not work as well and advice generated for your school may not be appropriate.

If your school’s building is used by external users outside of school hours, this can be added as a community use time. Adding this can help to get an idea of how much energy is used to power and heat the school during these periods. You might want to communicate with community users of your school about saving energy, or check how much you are spending on energy during these times.

If you are a school admin, you can change your school opening hours and community use times by clicking on Manage school and selecting Edit school times.

Common causes of high out-of-hours gas use

  • The heating and hot water system is left running during the school holidays or weekends
  • The heating and hot water system is coming on too early in the morning
  • The heating set temperature is too high requiring the heating to start very early to get the school up to temperature by the time pupils and staff arrive
  • The heating thermostat is located in a draughty, hard-to-heat location such as the school hall, so the heating struggles to get the thermostat up to the set temperature

What you should do to cut gas consumption

  • Develop a checklist of energy-saving tasks to be completed before a holiday. This list could include:
    • Heating: most school boilers have frost protection built in, so there is no need to leave your heating running on term time settings. If the school is to be occupied by a few staff members only, it is better to provide those staff with electric fan or panel heaters, rather than heating the whole school, or if the school’s heating is zoned just leave the occupied zone on. Some schools have an egg-timer type boost control which allows staff who come in outside normal hours to turn the heating on for between 30 minutes and 2 hours
    • Hot water: hot water systems can be turned off to save energy. Please remember however to flush the system before the school is occupied again to reduce Legionella risk – you need to do this whether or not you have turned the heating off over a holiday
  • Switch off the heating and hot water at the weekends. You do not need to run hot water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for legionella protection. You can switch off systems overnight and at weekends and should switch them on again in time to heat the water sufficiently before use. For more information on managing legionella risk, read the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) guidance Legionnaires’ disease: hot and cold water systems.
  • Reduce central heating set temperatures:
    • The best temperatures for schools are: 
      • Normal classrooms: 18°C
      • Corridors: 15°C
      • Areas with high levels of activity (e.g. sports halls): 15°C
      • Areas with low levels of activity: 21°C
      • Special needs schools or areas with very young children: 21°C
  • Change heating morning start times:
    • On an average winter day, the heating should come on no more than two hours before the school opens (an earlier start time may be necessary on a Monday).
    • Heating should go off at the time school closes as residual heat in the school should be enough to keep after-school clubs and staff working after school warm without the need for the heating to be left on.
  • Looking at zoning options if you have community groups using some of the school out of hours. You should not be heating the whole school if you have lettings in the sports hall only.