Context

Contour supplied and installed anti-ligature radiators for this mental health unit to increase safety levels within wards. The facility is a low- to medium-security mental health establishment for older adults, and faced issues which posed dangerous ligature risks, including where there are heating fixtures.

Requirements

The project requirement was to replace existing radiator covers that had been posing ligature risks to the service users at the mental health unit. The grilles of the covers were large enough to tie something around and elements were falling apart allowing them to then be used as weapons.

Another requirement for this facility was to improve the ease of access to radiators for cleaning and maintenance. Radiators can store harmful bacteria and dust if they’re not properly cleaned, and the existing radiators had difficult access because it involved removing a top grille and cutting into anti-pick mastic which in turn would damage the walls.

Additionally, the existing radiators were piped up TBOE (top, bottom, opposite end) and some TRV heads were placed at the top of the radiator covers. So, to ensure the radiators didn’t cut off too soon, remote TRV heads needed to be installed.

Within this mental health unit, radiators were significantly close to windowsills, so the client also requested to have a sloped top to reduce the risk of the guards being tampered with. This meant that a bespoke solution was required to fit the space available and meet the needs of the client.

Challenges

One of the challenges of the project was that the mental health unit required the survey and installation to be all done in a live ward. This meant the team had to show sensitivity to the service users and to the things that they might find at the mental health units. Unused medication and potential items to self-harm were found inside the previous radiator covers, which reinforced the need for anti-ligature heating solutions for fixtures like this that were being used as stash points.

Solution

Contour introduced bespoke anti-ligature LST radiators to provide safer heating solutions for this mental health unit. To suit individual needs and to cater for spaces under windowsills, a bespoke solution was carried out with sloping tops to ensure wellbeing.

Anti-Ligature features were optimised to ensure all service users were safe from ligature risks and opportunities to use the radiators as stash points.

Outcome

The mental health unit successfully achieved bespoke, anti-ligature heating solutions which greatly improved overall safety and ease of maintenance. Remote sensing TRV heads were put in place and all work that commenced on the live wards was done with sensitivity and empathy.

The top priority was the health and safety of all service users and Contour was keen on delivering high-quality designs to solve the problems that the mental health unit faced.