The State Council issued a circular on April 28 to strengthen security in schools and kindergartens by improving the campus security risk prevention system, risk control mechanism, and accident management.

Education of students’ safety awareness and self-protection should become an important part of campus safety education, including anti-bullying, anti-violence, counter-terrorism, and juvenile crime prevention, said the circular.

National standards concerning the production quality of campus infrastructure, teaching equipment, construction material, and PE equipment should be improved to protect students’ health.

Schools and kindergartens should set up safety zones where polluting companies and entertaining venues are forbidden, and public security departments should improve their daily control near school safety zones, according to the circular.

Education departments should improve campus security monitoring and risk assessment mechanism, to collect real-time campus security information and provide guidance to schools in risk prevention.

Social organizations with professional security expertise are encouraged to provide security services to schools.

As for the campus risk management mechanism, the circular stipulates that heads of schools and kindergartens are responsible for campus security and most schools should have at least one professional security guard on staff.

Schools should cooperate with communities and parents to build teams of school security volunteers.

Lifelong responsibility mechanism concerning safety and quality of school projects, such as teaching and dormitory buildings and sports facilities, should be established.

In addition, public security departments should reinforce police forces around schools and connect their monitoring platforms with schools’ video surveillance systems.

The circular also requires coordination among government departments of health and family planning commission, food and drug administration, housing and urban-rural development, environment protection, transport, quality supervision, and firefighting.

Education departments should cooperate with other related departments to create a guidebook concerning campus bullying and violence.

Public security departments should strengthen efforts to crack down on illegal actions against orderly education and safety, and property of teachers and students.

Monitoring and reporting mechanisms concerning violations of students’ personal rights should also be improved.

According to the circular, accident management mechanisms should be improved to deal with major natural disasters and public safety accidents.