Sector: Education | Location: Northern Ireland | System Type: CCTV + Access Control
The Challenge
Schools across Northern Ireland face a unique set of security pressures. They must protect pupils, staff, and visitors during the school day while also deterring vandalism and break-ins outside school hours — all without creating an environment that feels like a surveillance facility.
A school in Northern Ireland approached Advanced Overwatch with an ageing CCTV setup that had reached the end of its serviceable life. The existing cameras were analogue, low-resolution, and provided no remote viewing capability. The school had also identified a gap in access control at its main entrance: visitors could walk in unchallenged, creating a safeguarding risk that the governors wanted to close.
The school needed a solution that would:
- Replace failing analogue cameras with high-definition IP cameras covering all entrances, corridors, and the car park
- Allow the headteacher and designated safeguarding lead to view live and recorded footage remotely
- Control access at the main entrance to ensure all visitors were signed in and verified before entering the building
- Meet the duty of care requirements expected of a modern educational facility
- Be unobtrusive and appropriate for a school environment
Our Solution
Advanced Overwatch carried out a full site survey, mapping existing cable runs, identifying coverage blind spots, and assessing the most practical entry points for an access control system.
CCTV System:
We installed Hikvision 4MP AcuSense turret cameras across the site, covering:
- Main entrance and car park (two cameras providing overlapping coverage)
- Front and rear pedestrian gates
- Main reception and corridor leading to classrooms
- External building perimeters facing the rear playground
AcuSense technology filters out false motion alerts triggered by animals or wind, meaning the system only flags human or vehicle movement — particularly valuable for out-of-hours monitoring. All cameras feed to an NVR with 30 days of local storage. Remote viewing is configured via Hik-Connect, giving the headteacher secure mobile access without requiring a separate subscription service.
Access Control:
We installed a Paxton Net2 entry system on the main entrance. The system requires visitors to present at an audio/video intercom panel before being remotely admitted by reception staff. A detailed entry/exit log is maintained automatically, giving the school a complete audit trail for safeguarding purposes.
Staff access credentials are managed centrally, allowing permissions to be updated instantly when staffing changes occur — a significant improvement over the previous system, which relied on physical keys.
All works were carried out in accordance with our SSAIB Certified Company (NIRE127) status and our ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 27001 and ISO 45001 certified management systems.
The Outcome
Since installation, the school has benefited from:
- Full HD evidence-quality footage replacing the previous system’s unusable low-resolution recordings
- Remote monitoring capability, allowing the headteacher to verify site security outside school hours without attending in person
- A complete visitor log managed automatically by the Paxton system, supporting the school’s safeguarding obligations
Why Advanced Overwatch?
Advanced Overwatch is one of very few security companies in Northern Ireland to hold SSAIB Certification across all three major disciplines: intruder alarms, CCTV, and access control. We are also ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 27001 and ISO 45001 certified, meaning every installation is backed by independently audited quality, environmental, and information security management systems.
We understand that schools have different needs from commercial premises. Our engineers work around term timetables, communicate clearly with non-technical staff, and leave sites clean and tidy.
If your school or educational facility needs a security review, contact our team on 028 7087 8077 or visit advancedoverwatch.com.
SSAIB Certified Company: NIRE127. ISO 9001, 14001, 27001 and 45001 Certified.
