Upgrading the interior of education facilities is a process that can have huge benefits to students, teachers, and even the local community. Refreshing your education space, whether it is some new acoustic pods or furniture, or opting for a new look altogether and proceeding with a full fit out, investing in schools and universities ultimately creates better learning environments and furthers opportunities for students. Although interior design in schools is important to aid the learning environment, a successful education refurbishment is not just about aesthetics. Done correctly, a proper refurbishment can increase the safety and accessibility of the facility as well as provide a great opportunity to incorporate and adopt new technologies, all of which can positively impact student success!

Over the last 8 months we have been working hard creating fresh and exciting educational spaces for various clients such as Askham Bryan College in York, Leeds University and Bradford College. Each education refurbishment we have completed this year has varied in scope due to the unique requirements of each project. Annual school holidays and higher education breaks through the summer months provide quiet periods for educational spaces, meaning that all fit out projects within the education sector must be successfully completed within this tight timeframe. Let’s look at some of our recently completed education refurbishments to inspire your next project.

Appleton Academy- Bradford 

Appleton Academy had a large unused space in the centre of their main atrium, the height of which spanned three storeys. The height of the open atrium meant that building new rooms was impractical, and so the decision was made to opt for a more modular pod solution. This meant the client could maintain the look and feel of the open plan atrium whilst achieving their desired solution within budget.

The client required more space for small group teaching, including areas for study groups. After understanding Appleton Academy’s vision for the atrium area through our workplace consultancy process, we decided that bespoke pods were the best solution. These modular pods can be dropped into place and are equipped with lockable doors, ventilation, dimmable lights and all power and data requirements could also be accommodated.

Like any other education facility, Appleton Academy required a quick turnaround within the school holidays. Ben Johnson Interiors worked alongside the Appleton team to set out the pods prior to installation so we knew exactly where they would be built. The fit out and necessary preparation works took four days overall, with the installation of the pods themselves being completed within two days.

Our furniture team arranged for the fabric panels within the pods to receive fire treatment, as education settings require certain fire regulations to be met. White MFC cladding was also added to the exterior of the fabric panels to make the pods more hardwearing due to the amount of footfall in the area, and grey vinyl was added to the roof of the pods so that from the higher levels of the atrium the pods blended into the floor.

Carpet was installed inside the pods to help with internal acoustics and provide that ‘classroom’ feel. Manifestation was added to the glazing, ensuring privacy whilst still allowing staff members to see when pods are in use. Overall, Appleton Academy are over the moon with their latest additions to the facility and we have had some great feedback from the team.

Askham Bryan College- York 

Askham Bryan is local to the Ben Johnson Interiors head office, so naturally we were excited to work with them. We were successful in the fit out and furniture tender against two other contractors. Already predesigned by ThisIsInteriors, a designer we work with frequently, we got to work bringing the client’s plans to life. Our proposal to Askham Bryan college included value engineering ideas, project features such as feature lighting and instagrammable areas and visuals. Although the items were already specified by the designer, our team of expert furniture estimators worked hard to submit a value engineered proposal, providing substantial cost savings for the college. Neurodiversity and inclusivity were fundamental to the design scheme, and the layout was arranged according to the student’s learning activity.

From both a sustainability and cost saving perspective, it was decided that most of the existing desk frames were to be reused and we therefore supplied and installed fresh new MFC tops to these, breathing new life in to existing furniture. Our furniture selection also consisted of three large hexagonal tables and colourful phone booths. The client originally made the decision to remove the booths from the scope due to budget constraints, however, ultimately chose to incorporate them within the project. Thankfully, our trusted manufacturer was able to still turn these around in time for us, which meant that we were able to install them with the rest of the furniture items as planned.

There is now a help desk in the Tech Hub to assist with any questions the students may have. Ben Johnson Interiors worked with the designer to develop a bespoke desk that utilised the space and supported all functions, including a separate admin support office at the rear. The AI meeting hub is arranged into learning zones, where there are three central desks to support students working on team activities, with individual desks around the perimeter for solo working. The meeting hub also includes the phone booths for private work or teams calls.

We installed a bespoke feature archway which frames the opening to the library area. Included in the library are quiet solo desks as well as a snug area to support any neurodiverse students. Other quieter working areas can be found on the first floor, with acoustic baffles between desk clusters to aid sound absorption. There is also a snug and quiet soft seating zone on this floor to support students that need some down time.

AI themed graphics were installed throughout the space, featuring both digital coding and motivational quotes. Feature carpets where also utilised to help students identify different learning zones, walkways and to soften the space.

Bradford College 

Bradford College had appointed Bowman Riley Architects to help them refurbish a dated, underutilised flexible meeting facility into a modern multipurpose breakout space for students. Like Askham Bryan, the project was procured through a traditional tender process and Ben Johnson Interiors was successfully awarded the principal contractor role, procured through a JCT minor works contract.

Bradford College was a budget conscious project with sustainability at the forefront, therefore, reusing and upcycling was an important part of the project. We worked with the team to determine what could be reused. Existing carpet tiles were carefully removed and safely stored for reuse where possible and all doors were refurbished and retained and the existing bi-folding walls were restored by wrapping them in vinyl graphics to create a feature. The existing support desk was repositioned and upcycled, finally being clad with acoustic wall panels and grey vinyl to give it a more modern appeal. Thinking outside of the box and reusing these materials all helped to reduce the carbon footprint of the project.

The ‘Student Central’ scheme was effectively two rooms: a games room and a media lounge. In order to create a feature and control reverberation in the media lounge, the TV was set into an acoustic timber clad wall and the space was finished off with decorative pendants. A u-shaped sofa and flexible pouffes were then included in the space to support collaboration and comfort when watching movies or holding events. The media room also included a smart screen and flexible furniture solutions to allow the space to be used as a lounge or cinema.

To separate the two rooms in this ‘student central’ area, a bi-folding wall was installed allowing the space to be opened to create a larger events space when necessary. The games area includes a student service help desk, pool table, football table and ping pong table. As part of the contract, three types of vinyl flooring were installed to define the different types of breakout zones. As well as flooring, different styled feature lighting was also incorporated together with LED lighting and lightboxes for branding, way finding and to identify zones. To make the space more visually appealing we installed feature walls including a new faux planting wall.

As well as the exciting projects mentioned above, as of August 2024 we have also started fit out works for Leeds University. For the Leeds University project we will be automating a number of doors across six buildings, including fire alarm interfaces. Due to the size of the Leeds University site and the distance between the six buildings in question, the project will take three weeks to complete.

Our education fit out services cover everything from space planning, supplying and installing furniture to the full turnkey solution. We are experienced and trusted by many of our previous and current clients within the education sector to deliver on time and within budget.