The summer break is the quietest time of year for schools, colleges and universities, and the busiest time of year for the water systems inside them. Empty buildings, warm weather and pipework that suddenly sits unused create the exact conditions Legionella bacteria need to grow. For estates and facilities teams, the six-week holiday isn’t downtime. It’s the one window in the calendar to get essential water hygiene works done without disrupting a single lesson, lecture or exam.
This guide runs through the water hygiene priorities every education estate should tackle over the summer, and why leaving them until term starts is a false economy.
Why summer is the highest-risk season for education water systems
When occupancy drops, water stops moving. Taps that ran all day during term go quiet, showers in halls of residence sit unused, and water stagnates in the pipes. Add the warmer ambient temperatures of summer and you have water sitting still in the 20–45°C range where Legionella bacteria multiply most readily. A building that was low-risk in June can quietly become a concern by September if nothing is done. That’s why your controls, and your risk assessment, need to reflect how the building is actually used over the holidays, not how it looks in a full term.
1. Thermostatic mixing valve (TMV) servicing
TMVs blend hot and cold water to a safe temperature at the outlet, protecting users from scalding while supporting Legionella control. They need regular servicing to keep working correctly — and during term time, that means disruption. With students away, summer is the ideal time to service every TMV across the estate in one planned programme, from washrooms to science blocks to residential accommodation, and have the records ready for the new term.
2. Legionella risk assessments
Under the Approved Code of Practice L8 and HSG274, your Legionella risk assessment should reflect the real-world use of your building. A campus running at reduced summer occupancy behaves very differently from a full one, and an assessment that’s more than a couple of years old, or that doesn’t account for seasonal closures, may no longer match reality. Summer is the natural point to review and refresh it, so your control measures are based on how the estate operates now.
3. Cold water storage tank cleaning and chlorination
Cold water storage tanks (CWSTs) are often out of sight in roof spaces and plant rooms, and out of mind. Over time they collect sediment, debris and biofilm, all from a source that feeds the whole building. Cleaning and chlorinating your CWSTs is a core part of any water hygiene programme, and the quiet summer building is the ideal time to carry it out without affecting occupants. You should receive full certification afterwards for your compliance file.
4. Mothballing buildings that close for the summer
If a wing, halls block or entire site is closing over the holidays, the water system doesn’t switch off with it. Mothballing is the controlled way to manage a closure: the system is safely shut down, chemically cleaned and left in a known, documented state until the building is brought back into use. It removes the guesswork, and the risk, of reopening a building whose water has been sitting untouched for weeks. This is a common approach across the higher education sector, where large estates routinely isolate buildings during quieter periods.
5. Flushing little-used outlets
Where outlets can’t be fully taken out of use, regular flushing keeps water moving and reduces stagnation, one of the simplest and most effective Legionella controls available. It’s also one of the most commonly done incorrectly. A clear, documented flushing regime, carried out properly by trained staff, is essential for any building operating at reduced occupancy.
Logging and reporting: if it isn’t recorded, it didn’t happen
Every one of these tasks only protects you if it’s documented. Temperature checks, flushing, TMV servicing and tank cleans need to be recorded, dated and easy to produce when an auditor, insurer or governing body asks. Digital compliance systems bring all of this into one time-stamped, audit-ready place, a single source of truth that turns a stressful inspection into a straightforward one, especially for estates managing multiple buildings.
What happens if a water test fails?
An adverse sample result isn’t a disaster, it’s the monitoring system doing its job. What matters is the response. A robust process means investigating the likely cause, carrying out remedial action such as disinfection or a tank clean, re-sampling to confirm the system is back within safe limits, and documenting every step. A defined route from problem to resolution, with proof at the end, is what keeps a failed test from becoming a bigger problem.
Get your summer works booked
The estates teams who walk into September with a compliant building and a clean set of records are the ones who planned their water hygiene works during the holidays. Hydraclean carries out TMV servicing, Legionella risk assessments, tank cleaning and chlorination, mothballing and flushing programmes for schools, colleges and universities across the UK.
Email sales@hydraclean.co.uk and your quote will be with you within 24 hours, with servicing in place within 14 days. You can also get in touch through our contact page.