The Importance of Access for Cleaning and Maintenance in Secure Spaces

In secure custodial environments, heating systems must be more than strong and ligature resistant; they also need to be accessible for cleaning and maintenance, without compromising safety.

The DeepClean Extra+ anti-ligature radiator, the first of its kind to achieve MoJ approval for safer cells, was designed with both estates’ teams and specifiers in mind. Its features ensure ongoing hygiene and performance in some of the most challenging environments.

Why Cleaning Access Matters

In prisons, safer cells, and other secure settings, hygiene is a constant concern. Radiators and guards can quickly accumulate dust, dirt, and bacteria if they aren’t easy to clean. For environments where vulnerable individuals are housed, this can create both infection control risks and maintenance burdens.

For estates and facility management (FM) teams, regular cleaning is essential, but it must be practical. Products that are difficult to access can result in incomplete cleaning, additional costs, or even the need for specialist contractors.

Designing with Estates Team in Mind

The DeepClean Extra+ radiator incorporates Contour’s patented full-height access door, which allows staff to open the guard fully for deep cleaning while maintaining complete security when locked. This makes day-to-day hygiene management significantly easier.

Additional features designed with estates teams in mind include:

• Secure internal fixings – so access points are controlled and safe.
• Additional Pin Torx screws – ensuring guards remain tamper-resistant when closed.
• BioCote® anti-microbial protection – built into the coating to help reduce bacterial growth between cleans.

These details reduce time spent on routine cleaning, while supporting infection control policies across custodial facilities.

Meeting Specification Requirements

For architects and M&E consultants, access is also a compliance issue. Products specified for prison cell heating must balance security with hygiene, and MoJ approval testing reflects this.

The DeepClean Extra+ radiator achieved approval because it meets the MoJ’s STD/X/SPEC/063 specification requirements for safer cells, which includes ensuring products are accessible for proper cleaning and maintenance without creating ligature risks.

This means specifiers can be confident they are meeting both safety and hygiene standards when including the product in designs.

Supporting Safer Cells and Beyond

While MoJ approval applies to safer cells, the cleaning and maintenance benefits of the DeepClean Extra+ extend to other secure environments, including:

• Young Offender Institutions (YOIs)
• Police custody suites
• 136 mental health assessment suites
• Immigration detention centres
• Pupil Referral Units (PRUs)

In each of these settings, easy cleaning access helps estates teams maintain both safety and hygiene standards without compromising security.

Are You Specifying Heating for Safer Cells or Custodial Facilities?

The MoJ-approved DeepClean Extra+ radiator combines robust anti-ligature design with easy cleaning and maintenance access, making life easier for estates teams while giving specifiers confidence in compliance.

📞 Call us on 01952 290498
📧 Email sales@contourheating.co.uk
🌐 Learn more about the DeepClean Extra+