It seems like a useless consideration: how can school washroom quality enhance student experience? Obviously, students aren’t spending their whole day in the bathroom – the classroom is the central space involving education. However, school washroom quality matters. Here’s why…
This article will take a deep dive into how the quality and design of school washrooms can actually enhance student experiences. Looking to enrol more students in your school and improve parents’ perception of your educational facilities? We’re here to explain exactly how you can do this, through inspired school washroom design.
The Importance of School Washroom Design and Reputation
School environments are often carefully planned spaces that put the needs of children at the forefront of many design choices. For example, chairs and tables within classrooms are specifically built to suit the particular age groups that use that space. The classroom is considered to be at the heart of most learning activities; a place where teachers deliver engaging lessons and students become inspired.
Keeping this in mind, there are actually more aspects to the educational environment than are frequently considered. Behind the scenes, children and students require much more than just a classroom space. Facilities such as bathrooms and eateries are necessary for children to function, providing them with the comfort and energy they need to learn efficiently.
So, what about designing school washrooms? The importance of washroom design within educational environments is often overlooked. Of course, this is because teaching is done within the classroom. School bathrooms are forgotten as they’re just a facility, only to be used when necessary. However, they are entirely necessary; functional spaces that improve students’ comfort and wellbeing.
Improving School Status with Great Educational Washroom Design
The quality of educational washroom environments can have a huge impact on how both students and parents perceive the school. It’s not just the public facing spaces within the school that interior designers have to consider.
Whether you are trying to improve upon school status, or enhancing the ease of use for students… Don’t jump straight into re-designing the already suitable spaces within your educational facility. Taking a look at the behind the scenes areas such as school washrooms, and thinking about how they should be improved, is a great first step.
Imagine you’re walking into a café, and your first port of call before ordering is the toilet. You enter the washroom to find it’s grimy, unhygienic and full of outdated equipment. Would you still want to order food from that café, knowing the restrooms have been completely disregarded?
Work backwards and fix the toilet facilities first. You’ll then have amazing washrooms to build upon, from the inside out.
Parent Expectations and School Washroom Maintenance
When parents come to view a school, they’re looking to evaluate how suitable that particular school environment is for their beloved children. They want to look beyond the classroom. The classroom plays an integral part in their evaluations, of course – it’s where students will spend most of their time. But they also want to be assured that their children are well looked after.
Facilities, such as dining areas and student washrooms, are often more closely scrutinised than the classroom themselves. This is because when a great deal of effort goes into creating areas that care for the students, parents begin to comprehend just how much the school cares about their wellbeing.
As a major focal point for parents that are considering sending their children to a particular school, whether it’s a primary or secondary point of education, student washrooms should be well designed and hygienic. Read on to discover how quality bathroom design can also enhance the student experience, too.
How Student Experiences are Enriched with Quality Bathroom Design
Each and every one of your school’s students will visit the washroom at least once a day. It’s possible that teachers and admin staff may not consider the impact that school bathroom design has on their students. This is simply because they have no reason to use the facilities themselves.
Students are always bound to relate the quality of their washroom experiences to the reputation of the school itself. A fancy, well equipped classroom may provide them with all the learning facilities they need… But their needs don’t stop there.
Break times and washroom requirements can form the way students interact with teachers, other students, and even the information that is sent their way. Unhygienic bathrooms leave children feeling disheartened and forgotten about, while the necessities of washroom design and toilet requirements are disregarded.
In order to overcome this, it is imperative that school washroom design is improved. Rather than seeing the bathrooms as the final touch, you should be focusing on transforming them first. Especially right now, sanitised personal spaces matter more than ever.
Here are a few key tips as to how you can provide students with perfect washroom areas that will enhance their learning abilities.
Student Washroom Design Tips
- Think about washroom traffic and how busy the space will become. Each school has varying amounts of students, and the position of every washroom will have an impact on how busy that area becomes. Frequently used bathrooms may become damaged more often, so the durability of appliances becomes a major consideration here.
- Consider the hygienic implications with regards to bathroom facilities and fixtures. Fittings such as toilet seats can be carefully selected in order to minimise the amount of backsplash that occurs when flushing after use. Materials used to fit out the bathroom will also make a huge difference. Imagine you’re the cleaner in charge of sanitising the space. You want smooth, wipeable surfaces with no hidden holes where germs can accumulate.
- Don’t forget about the aesthetic elements of your educational washroom. Students will appreciate how the school has worked to uplift their surroundings. This can be done by adding bold colours, textured installations or even natural elements, such as plants. Windows aren’t always appropriate for bathrooms, but consider strategically placed windows that invite outdoor lighting without compromising on privacy.
- Educational content can be installed within washrooms, too. Learning is thought by many as being restricted to the classroom environment. However, children are constantly learning as they go about their day, taking in stimuli from every environment they come across. Think about placing infographics and posters within the washrooms, so they have something to look at as they wait to use the toilet.
Design Quality Educational Washrooms with BrookhouseUK
Wondering how you can achieve a well designed washroom space that appeals to both parents and students? BrookhouseUK have developed a range of bespoke services that will cater to all your educational bathroom design needs. With space utilisation services that allow you to provide for more students with less, to designing encouraging places that will inspire children to do better in the classroom…
We know just how important it is to consider your school’s status in referring and enrolling new students. Their entire educational experiences may be shaped by the interior environments they are surrounded by throughout these formative years. That’s why we’re here to help. Get in touch with our approachable team at BrookhouseUK if you’d like to discuss your ideas. We’re sure we can expand upon them, bringing your dreams to fruition!