Fitting-out an internal space in the right way has become an increasingly important factor when designing interiors. Furniture can create warm, welcoming and vibrant atmospheres and allow a well-designed building to work in the best possible way for those who use it.

Within education buildings, furniture has an additional role to play in creating a range of different environments to support various learning styles; from calm, focused areas for individual study to group and interactive work. Furniture is also an important element of the ‘long-life, loose-fit’ approach essential to the long term flexibility and adaptability of education buildings.

Designing the right spaces

Right now, spaces that support collaboration are key to getting students back to university buildings and working in a fulfilling way, following the difficult pandemic years which saw so many students working in isolation. The right furniture can create gathering spaces that people love to use, using small groupings to encourage conversation and spontaneous connections.

In one of our current projects, an American University specialising in health sciences, we have organised workspaces into ‘neighbourhoods’ with open work-stations for informal sessions and central gathering spots for socialising. Soft fabrics,

curved forms, low sidelines and intimacy of scale are all important in creating a welcoming atmosphere. Education buildings are reflecting the desire for environments which create more of a sense of home. Warm colours and tactile natural materials can help create an enjoyable ambience and promote wellbeing through feelings of comfort and familiarity.

Outdoor learning spaces maximise the capacity of a building and also support well-being through connections to nature, offering the opportunity to provide external lounge areas for rest and reflection alongside more formal learning spaces.

Resilience and sustainability

New ways of teaching including active, small group, fully in person or hybrid mean that we are designing with resilience in mind. Flexible furniture layouts equipped with robust technology systems can best adapt to future challenges, allowing the futureproofing of evolving and dynamic teaching modes.

In adaptive re-use schemes, furniture can transform a space, without the need for intrusive building works, resulting in cost effective flexible solutions. Modularity is key here with furniture that are easy to move, reconfigure and able to work for various groupings. For example: Nesting, modular tables able to form clusters can be used to create larger settings as well as intimate,smaller spaces for both solo-working and collaborative sessions.

Circularity is central to our interiors and FFE strategy, and we encourage our clients to re-use as much of their existing furniture as possible, so that nothing goes to landfill. This creates an honest patchwork of furniture that had a previous life but can be further re-used and enjoyed.

At our new School of Data Science at UVA (University of Virginia), we are designing a bespoke 24-person boardroom table from timber fallen in the university grounds. This is a great story for a client committed to a strong environmental approach, and one that helps nurture an authentic sustainable culture.

Diversity and Accessibility

Issues of accessibility are crucial in education and the right furniture selection can help ensure that the building supports everybody.

Personalisation and choice are key. At UVA, our classrooms offer a variety of chair types, giving students a choice of seating that best suits their body type or abilities. In the offices, ergonomic task chairs that recline, and sit- stand desks can support comfortable and reconfigurable working arrangements.

We always consider the needs of users when specifying furniture in social environments. Deep, open sofas may not always be easy for people to get up from, and high bar tables and stools may exclude people in wheelchairs. Opening up inclusive space-use to as many people as possible is an important element in the long life cycle of a building.

The Forum at Nottingham Trent University features multifunctional furniture to create comfortable and inviting public spaces. We selected styles which have stood the test of time, rather than being overly influenced by fashionable trends. Combined with adaptability, that means it is still working well and looking good.

And at our Smith Campus Centre for Harvard University a variety of choice in the furniture has allowed people to create different experiences and use the spaces in the way that best suits them, giving a sense of belonging, control and well-being.

The right furniture can encourage students and staff to spend more time in their university buildings, in spaces that are welcoming, enjoyable and practical for all. Furniture can also help attract new demographics while future proofing against changing teaching modes.