Running a school can be challenging. One of the most difficult aspects of school management is sourcing and maintaining furniture. Children are notorious for damaging furniture, sometimes intentionally and sometimes accidentally. However, if you allow your school’s furniture to deteriorate, it could damage your reputation with parents.
Students must be comfortable at all times, otherwise their studies could be negatively impacted. This means you need to find the highest quality furniture you can, otherwise, they might not be able to focus on their work. Here are a few practical tips you can use to get the best quality furniture around.
Sturdy Construction
The furniture you buy needs to be robust and durable. Typically, furniture used by schools has to be sturdy, so students don’t injure themselves. If a child sits on a chair and collapses, their parents could take legal action against the school. The last thing any school wants is to have to deal with a lawsuit and angry parents. Sturdy construction is therefore a quality you need to find in classroom furniture.
Affordable Prices
The furniture you buy needs to be affordably priced. One of the worst things you can do is buy furniture without coming up with a budget first. A budget will give you an idea of how much you can reasonably afford to spend on furniture. Bear in mind that if you buy in bulk, you can often get massive discounts, but more on that later. If you do not have enough money to place a large order outright, consider asking the furniture vendor you plan on working with if they have any repayment plans available.
Think Colours
The furniture you buy needs to be painted in a color that looks professional, but also playful. It is important to find balance, otherwise the furniture used in your classrooms could serve as a distraction. If you buy furniture that looks too formal, however, it could have the opposite effect and could make classrooms look sterile and demotivating.
Ergonomic Design
Ergonomic design is something always worth thinking about. The last thing you want is for students to develop back problems because the furniture you decided to buy is not designed with comfort in mind. To find furniture with ergonomic design, you can conduct a basic internet search. Make sure that you test the furniture out before you buy it. Ask for samples from the supplier you plan on working with, or if you are able to, go and visit their showroom in person, so you can get hands-on with all of their different offerings.
Stain-resistant Materials
Children of all ages can be messy, whether they are young or old. Your main priority, as mentioned above, should be finding furniture you can maintain with relative ease. Because of this, you need to try and find stain-resistant furniture. Furniture that is stain-resistant won’t be as easily stained, and as a consequence, will be usable for much longer without picking up marks or blemishes.
Proper Size
The furniture you buy needs to be sized appropriately. A lot of headteachers and stakeholders make the mistake of buying furniture that is either too big or too small. To find out what size furniture you need, get in touch with a professional classroom furniture supplier and tell them the age of your students. They will then be able to find you the right furniture.
Stackable Options
If you are able to, buy stackable furniture. Stackable furniture is more compact and much easier to store. You will be able to stack your chairs and tables up and store them in unused rooms or in the corners or sides of classrooms when your classes are performing physical activities that require movement. Stackable furniture tends to be more affordable since it is usually made out of lightweight materials.
Safety Regulations
The furniture you buy must comply with safety regulations. If it does not, you could get into a lot of trouble. As mentioned above, furniture that is not safe for use could lead to young people injuring themselves. If it does, you will be held accountable. This could lead to your school being sued or you losing your position.
Lightweight Furniture
Lightweight furniture is the best investment you can make, not just because it is easily stackable. No, lightweight furniture also tends to be much cheaper than ordinary fixed furniture, mainly because the latter is made out of materials like wood or heavy metals. Lightweight furniture is more widely available too, since it is the preferred type for school furniture. Just because you buy lightweight furniture does not mean you need to compromise on quality, though. Make sure the furniture you buy is made out of the most robust, durable materials you can.
Product Warranties
The furniture you buy needs to be covered by a warranty. The worst thing you can do is buy furniture that doesn’t come with a warranty, especially if you are buying in bulk, because if you do, you won’t have any coverage in the event that it gets broken. A warranty ensures that if furniture deteriorates or breaks prematurely, you can get it replaced or fixed free of charge.
Non-toxic Finishes
Try to find furniture that has had non-toxic finish applied to it. The last thing you want is for your school furniture to have toxic chemicals sprayed on it. Not only can this make your classrooms unsafe, but it can actually lead to students unintentionally poisoning themselves if they chip away at furniture and get particles in their mouths. While serious poisoning is highly unlikely, this is still something to be aware of. If you are going to commission custom items, make sure eco-friendly finishes are used, as you usually cannot return them.
Bulk Purchases
Finally, try to buy classroom furniture in bulk. Buying it in bulk is a great way to save money. Many retailers will give discounts of more than 20% if you buy their products from them in bulk. It is worth noting, however, that if you are going to buy in bulk in order to receive a discount, you will usually be asked to pay in cash and not use repayment plans.
Buying classroom-grade furniture has never been easier, thanks to the internet. All you need is a Wi-Fi connection and a mobile device and you can order furniture. Make sure you find the most reliable, trusted vendors you can. A vendor’s review will help you to determine how trustworthy they are.
