Library Refurbishment Guide

Future Vision

Ifyourschoolorlibrary hasbegunoris considering refurbishingyour existingspace,this guideisforyou!

Librariesandlearningspacesareavitalcontributortocreativityand innovationinschools.However,overtime,thesespacescanbecome outdatedandlessadaptabletotheevolvingneedsofeducation.To addressthis,youcanembarkonacomprehensiverefurbishment proecttotransformyourlibraryintomoreflexiblelearningspacesthat empowersstudentstothrive.

Anyrefurbishmentproectshouldbebuiltonafuturevision.Whatare thekeydriversforchangingyourspace,howwillitenhanceboth teachingandlearning?Willthespaceremainfunctionalin5oreven10 years? Takeamomenttoreflectonyourcurrentsituationandenvisionwhere youwanttobe.Howwillthenewspacemaketeachingeasierand learningmoreeffectiveforstudents?Willitfosteradeeperimmersion inliteracy?Canthenewspaceinspiremorestudentstospendvaluable timeinthelibrary?Howfuture-proofandadaptablewillyournew environmentbe?Doesitsupportstudentwellbeingasa‘safespace’?

Usethisguidetodirectyourthoughtsaroundthebenefitsofanewly refurbishedspaceandenvisagewhatthefutureoflibrariesandlearning spaceswilllooklikeinyourschool.

Spaceanalysis+ auditing

Beforeembarkingonarefurbishmentproect,it'scrucialtoconducta comprehensiveassessmentofyourcurrentspace.Thisincludesevaluating existinglayouts,identifyinganyareasthatrequireattention,andassessingthe overallconditionofthefacilities.Thisinitialsurveywilllaythegroundworkfor developingawell-informedrefurbishmentplan.

Toconductathoroughspaceanalysis,considerthefollowing:

Stripbacktoablank(er)canvas

Clearoutandempty(wherepossible!)thespaceyouareworkingwith.Youcan gainaclearervisualrepresentationoftheroommeasurements.Thiswillenable youtoidentifytheidealplacementforbothexistingandnewfurniture,aswellas determinewherenewelectricalpointsmayberequired.

Measureyourspaceandevaluatethelayout

Measureeverythingtodefinethesquaremeterageyouhavetoworkwith.Can thespacebeopeneduporzonedoff?Carefullyexaminethecurrentfloorplan toidentifyareasthathinderflexibilityandfunctionality.Considerthe arrangementofdisplayers,bookbrowsers,shelvingandseating.Itisalso importanttoassessyourcurrentpowerprovisionatthisstageandidentifyif youwillrequireanyadditionsormodifications.

Spaceanalysis+ auditing

Assessstructuralconditions

Visuallyassessthestructuralintegrityofthespace,includingwalls,floors,ceilings, andelectricalpoints.Identifyanyareasthatrequirerepairormaintenancetoensure asafeandfunctionalenvironment.

Don’tforgetthebasics

Airconditioning,ventilation,heating,andlightingareallimportantareastoexamine beforebeginningtoplanyourrefurbishmentproect.Doingthisinyourinitialanalysis andauditwillminimiseriskofunexpectedsurprisesandcostsduringtheproect.

Considerexistingvsnewelements

Thinkaboutexistingelementsinyourspaceyoucankeep,tosavemoney.Useyour analysistoconsideranyremaininggaps,toidentifywhatnewfurnitureand equipmentyouwillrequiretofulfilyourfuturevision.

Utilisingyourexistingspace

Utilisingyourexistingspaceandavoidinganyexpensivebuildingworksignificantly reducesthetimeandcostoftheproectandwillreducetheriskofunexpected problemsduringtheinstallationprocess.Thinkaboutinvestinginmobilefurnitureto developamoreflexiblelibraryspacethatcanbeadaptedtoaccommodatemultiple activitiesquicklyandeasily.

Planningand communicating

Consultwithwiderstakeholders

Onceyourspaceanalysisiscomplete,consultwithkeystakeholders,includingother teachers,librarians,students,andschooladministrators.Gathertheirinsightsand perspectivesontherefurbishmentproect.Acollaborativeapproachwillhelptoensurethat therefurbishedlibraryalignswiththeneedsandexpectationsoftheschoolcommunity.

Planningand communicating yourvision

Storageaudit-calculatestorageneeds

Storageisapinchpointwithinanydepartment, therefore,maximising,andutilisingstorage whereverpossiblewillbefundamentaltoany refurbishment,especiallyifspaceisatapremium.

Seewhereadditionalstorageorcleversolutions couldbeaddedtoallowstaffandpatronstostore bags,foldersetc.

Planningand

Colourandaesthetics

Theessenceofengagingdesignwillalwaysbeaboutpeople–howtheyuseaspace andhowitmakesthemfeel.Itisabouttherealitiesofwhatmakesforanattractive, inspiring,andmeaningfulenvironment.Itcanswaythinking,changeactions,and causereactions.

Colourcanconsiderablyimproveyourmood,caninspire,engage,andcanhelpto raiseourspiritsorthespiritsofothersandthisappliestostudentsandthelearning environment.Addingapopofcolourandvibranceinrightwaycanstimulateand betterengagestudentcreativityandinnovativethinking.Doyourresearchandfind outhowtobalancecolourandcleanlinestocreatetheperfectspace.

Readourblog‘Colouryourworld’forsomeinspirationonapplyingcolourtothe learningenvironment.

Read blog

Planningand communicating yourvision

Lightingenhancesstudentperformance

Itisproventhattherightleveloflightingsignificantly improvesstudentmoodandproductivity.Colour RenderingIndex(CRI)iswhatrevealsanobectscolour throughalightsource.Naturaldaytimelightis100%CRI, therefore,classroomlightingshouldbeatleast80%CRI, however,therecommendedlevelofclassroomCRIis closerto90%.ReadtheEducationFundingAgencydaylightdesignguideformoreinformationonhow lightingcanbeperfectedinschools.

Maximisenaturallight

Ifyourbudgetallows,optimisenaturallightby strategicallyplacingwindowsorincorporatingskylights. Naturallightcreatesabrighter,morewelcoming,and conducivelearningenvironment. Introducenaturalelements

Addnaturalelements,suchasplantsorgreenwalls,to enhanceairquality,createacalmingatmosphere,and promoteasenseofconnectionwithnature.

Planningand communicating yourvision

Fundamentals

Thinkbigbutberealistic!Createalistofitemswhicharedeemedasa ‘musthave’andfundamentaltoensuringyourvisioncomestolife.Listthe thingsyouwould‘liketohave’,andwhatcanbeaddedlater.

Areyouintroducinganewspaceinthefuture?e.g.relaxedseatingarea, teencorner,silentzoneetc. .

Planningand communicating yourvision

Azonedapproach

Considerazonedapproachwithcleardesignatedareaswithinyourspace.Itwillallowyou toaccommodatemultipleactivities.Zonescanhelpstudentstobecomefamiliarwitheach disciplineandwhatactivitiesareusedforeachi.e.,quickpicks,enhancedstock,read& relax,kidsreading,andteenreadingspaces.

Other considerations

Resources

Withanyrefurbishmentproect,youwill needtodoanauditonwhatresources youhave,andwhatnewequipmentand materialsyouneedtocompleteyour refurbishment.

Purchasingalistoffurnitureand consumablesfromasinglesupplierwho candesign,install,andsupplyallyou requirewillsaveyoutimeandmoney, andisonelessthingtothinkabout!

Other considerations

Keep,recycle,orthrowaway

Insteadofsimplythrowingthingsaway,arethereanyitemsthatcanberepurposed, donatedorrecycled?

Takethetimetomakeacomprehensivelistofalltheitemsyoucurrentlyhave, distinguishingbetweenwhatcanbekeptandwhatcanbediscardedtoeasily identifywhichitemscanberecycled.Additionally,canitemsbesoldontogenerate revenuetowardstheproect?

Other considerations

Lifecycleandwholelifecosts

Byinvestinginhigh-qualityfurnitureand equipmentthatstandsthetestoftime, younotonlygainthesupportof stakeholdersandpotentialfunders,but alsothepeaceofmindthatyourspacewill endureandwithstandthedailydemands ofalibraryenvironment .

Other considerations

Researchandvalidation

Successstoriesfromotherschoolswillhelpstrengthenyourvisionandensureyouareon therighttrack.

Browsingthroughcasestudiesandengaginginconversationswithotherlibrarianswho havealreadytransformedtheirlearningspacesnotonlyprovidesyouwithreassurance,but canalsoconvincekeystakeholdersandfundersofthebenefitsbehindyourproect.

Designaflexiblelayout

Wherepossible,planalayoutthatmaximisesadaptabilityandsupportsa varietyofactivities.Considerincorporatingmovablepartitions,mobile displayers,bookbrowsers,versatileshelving,focuswalls,anddedicatedzones forspecificactivities,suchasreading,study,ITetc.

Planningyour proect

Selectdurablematerials

Choosematerialsthatcanwithstandtherigoursofdailylibraryuse,suchaswipe cleanandsturdyfurniture.Prioritisematerialsthataredurableandeasytocleanand maintain.

Yourplanshouldoutlineacleartimelinefortheproect,establisharealisticbudget, andspecifythematerials,equipment,andfixturesrequiredfortherefurbishment.

Planningyour proect

Designsteps

Therearemanythingstothinkaboutwhendesigningyourspace,includinga comprehensivereviewofroommeasurements,electricalconsiderations,positioning ofnewfurnitureetc.

Forlargerrefurbishmentsyoumaywanttoexplorethepossibilityofaconsultative designprocess,workingwithexpertsindeliveringeducationalspacestoensureyour designsarecomprehensive,accurateandconsidered.

Aconsultativeprocesswouldgiveyoutheoptionof2Dand3Dlayouts,tomaximise thepotentialofyourspace.

Designing

Planningyour proect

Supplieranalysis

Doyoursupplierresearch!Ifyouareusingasuppliertohelpdesignand installyourrefurbishmentproectortosimplyprovidenewfurnitureand equipment-makesuretheyareeducationspecialistsandhaveprevious experiencedeliveringsuchproectsandservices.

Foralarge-scalerenovationproect,workingwithasinglesupplierwhocan handleeverythingfromdesignandinstallationtoresourcesupply,cannot onlysaveyoumoney,butalsofreeupyourtimeandenergy,andkeepto tighttimescales.

Managingyour proect

Onsiteinstallation

Stayincontrol!Controllingthecontrollables’ butpreparingfortheunexpectedisthebest waytobeginanyproect.Witha comprehensiveplaninplace,youwillstayin fullcontrolthroughout,andareabletoeasily managekeystakeholdersandmeetdeadlines.

Ifyouareworkingwithaninstallationsupplier onalargerproect,thiswillhelpreducethe pressurewhenitcomestomanagingthe proectaswellastheinitialdesigningand planning.

Bringflexibilityto yourlibraryspaceswith

WFEducationoffersaspecialistdesign servicefornewbuildandrefurbishment proects Workwithourteamsto perfectyourspace,thenseethem cometolifein3D.

Fromdesigntoinstallationtoaftercare andresources,workwithonefriendly team