The Bursar s Guide to Boarding House Design

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1 whitepaper The Bursar s Guide to Boarding House Design architects and surveyors 2013 t:

2 The Bursar s Guide to Boarding House Design The refurbishment or development of a boarding house can be a key development for an independent school. To help guide you through the process, the following notes explain some of the key lessons we have learnt through recent projects. General Considerations The size of the house is a fundamental consideration. Too small and staffing requirements make it inefficient, but too large and the atmosphere may suffer. In our experience most boarding houses accommodate students, plus a House Master with private accommodation and possibly an Assistant House Master and Matron. Ideally all staff accommodation should have its own dedicated access to allow for the free movement of staff and their visitors without disturbing the boarders. The number of beds per room is an important question. Three should be avoided since it can lead to one boarder feeling isolated. Generally younger children enjoy being in a larger dorm where they have more opportunity to form new friendships and feel less isolated. Sixth form boarders are often attracted to single rooms where they can study in private while already feeling confident about their friendship circle. In our experience there is often more demand for baths in girls' houses than boys. Girls seem to like to have a soak, whereas boys are happy with a quick shower. Sixth formers desire en-suite shower rooms, plus their own kitchen and washing facilities. En-suite accommodation can be created by the use of pre-plumbed bathroom pods, constructed in a factory with all fittings ready plumbed. These pods offer the advantage of speed on site and the higher quality control of a factory environment. One option to allow for flexibility is to design adjacent bedrooms to have the option of being combined into a single dorm. Connecting double doors can be locked open and hidden within the depth of the wall of fixed furniture allowing for two doubles to become a four bed dorm instantly. Approximate costs Obviously the cost of the boarding house will be dependent on several factors such as the architectural design, build and finish quality, size and ground conditions. However as a rough guide we would expect a new-build, 60 bed boarding house to cost in the region of 3.5m including fees, VAT and furniture. Legislation The Education Act 2002 set out the standards all independent schools in England must satisfy as a condition of their registration. Design Regulations When designing a boarding house in addition to the Building Regulations there are three key documents to comply with:- 1. The Education (School Premises) Regulations The Education (Independent School Standards) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012 (ISSR). 3. The Boarding Schools National Minimum Standards (2013) (NMS). All three have recently been updated following the independent Review of Education Capital by Sebastian James in The Education (School Premises) Regulations 1999 only apply to maintained schools in England. However the other two documents apply to independent schools and all three were amended in parallel to give better consistency across all sectors. t:

3 They are all less prescriptive than before, for example they no longer state the number of toilets that the school must have per child or the temperature at which the rooms must be maintained. Instead the general position is that the premises (such as toilets and washing facilities, lighting, acoustic conditions and supply of drinking water) must be 'suitable'. In determining whether or not the facility is 'suitable' the school should have regard to the age, number and sex of the pupils and any special requirements that the pupils have. The Education (Independent School Standards) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012 (ISSR) Part 5 is the section of most interest to architects designing any building for an independent school. The following sections would apply to a boarding house:- TOILETS (a) Suitable toilet and washing facilities are provided for the sole use of pupils; (b) Separate toilet facilities for boys and girls aged 8 years or over are provided or alternatively individual uni-sex toilets can be provided if they are contained within a single, lockable room. (c) Suitable changing accommodation and showers are provided for pupils aged 11 years or over at the start of the school year who receive physical education. (d) An accessible toilet for pupils can also be used by staff, volunteers and visitors whether or not they are disabled. MEDICAL CARE The regulations do not state where medical facilities should be located, however as part of that provision it would be good practice to include a Matron's Office within a new boarding house. The overall responsibility is to provide:- (a) Accommodation for the medical examination and treatment of pupils; (b) Accommodation for the short term care of sick and injured pupils, which includes a washing facility and is near to a toilet facility; and (c) Where a school caters for pupils with complex needs, additional medical accommodation which caters for those needs. ACOUSTICS, LIGHTING AND SERVICES (a) Acoustic conditions and sound insulation of each room are suitable, having regard to the nature of the activities which normally take place therein. (b) The lighting in each room or other internal space is suitable, having regard to the nature of the activities which normally take place therein; and (c) External lighting is provided in order to ensure that people can safely enter and leave the school premises. (d) Suitable drinking water facilities are provided these must be readily accessible at all times and in a separate area from the toilet facilities. (e) Toilets and urinals have an adequate supply of cold water and washing facilities have an adequate supply of hot and cold water; (f) Cold water supplies that are suitable for drinking are clearly marked as such; (g) The temperature of hot water at the point of use does not pose a scalding risk to users. The Boarding Schools National Minimum Standards (2013) (NMS) The Standards apply in England to: (a) All mainstream boarding schools, for all age groups of pupils up to 18; (b) Any pupils over the age of 18 who live alongside those who are under 18; and (c) Children accommodated at the school, other than pupils (if the school, or any member of its staff as part of their work for the school, is responsible for looking after them during their stay at school). t:

4 These Standards do not apply to: (a) Boarding schools which accommodate or arrange accommodation for any child for more than 295 days a year, or intend to do so. (b) Schools where all boarders are 16 or over. (c) Residential Special Schools. (d) Instances where another organisation is responsible for the children, such as when the premises are let during the school holidays. In such cases the organisation is responsible for their welfare rather than the school. (e) The children of staff working at the school and living in their household. Several sections cover the physical requirements of the boarding accommodation. Some mirror those in The Education (Independent School Standards) (England) Regulations. Below are the ones which are both relevant to the design and add detail to the requirements:- STANDARD 5 - BOARDING ACCOMMODATION (a) Suitable sleeping accommodation is provided for boarders. Where pupils are aged 8 years or over, sleeping accommodation for boys is separate from sleeping accommodation for girls. (b) Suitable living accommodation is provided for boarders for the purposes of organised and private study outside school hours and for social purposes. (c) Suitable toilet and washing facilities are provided for boarders, which are reasonably accessible from the sleeping accommodation. Toilet and washing facilities provide appropriate privacy for boarders. (d) Reasonable adjustments are made to boarding houses to provide adequate accessible accommodation for any boarders with restricted mobility. (e) Boarding accommodation is reserved for the use of those children designated to use it, and is protected from access by unauthorised persons. STANDARD 8 PROVISION AND PREPARATION OF FOOD AND DRINKS (a) Suitable accommodation is provided for the hygienic preparation, serving and consumption of boarders' main meals. This may be situated in the main school provided it is adjacent to or reasonably accessible from the boarding accommodation. STANDARD 10 - ACTIVITIES AND FREE TIME (a) Boarders have access to a range and choice of safe recreational areas, both indoors and outdoors, and there are safe areas at school where boarders can be alone if they wish. STANDARD 15 STAFFING AND SUPERVISION (a) There is at least one adult member of staff sleeping in each boarding house at night, responsible for the boarders in the house. (b) Boarders have a satisfactory means of contacting a member of staff in each house at night. (c) Suitable accommodation (consisting of accommodation in which meals may be taken, living accommodation and sleeping accommodation) and suitable toilet and washing facilities are provided for residential staff. This accommodation is appropriately separated from the accommodation and facilities provided for boarding pupils. t:

5 Conclusion The regulations surrounding boarding house design are fairly detailed and lenghty. Involving an experienced architect from the concept stage will help you to navigate through the process, respond effectively to the requirements of staff, students and parents and ensure a successful outcome from your investment. About squires and brown is an architectural practice specialising in the independent education sector. From our office in Cheshire we provide a full range of architectural, building surveying and project management services to clients throughout the country. We work on projects of all sizes from masterplanning to boarding houses and whole new-build schools. As specialists in the education sector we have excellent experience of working on historic sites with listed buildings, protected ecologies and complicated planning issues. For more information, please contact John Squires on or john.squires@.co.uk Malvern College, Worcestershire, New-Build Boarding House Queenswood School, Hertfordshire, Refurbishment of a 6th form boarding house t: