New Barn School, Horsham, West Sussex

For schools in the UK, inclement weather and a lack of shaded safe spaces can be restrictive when looking to provide students with the freedom to enjoy outdoor activities year-round. For the New Barn School in Horsham, West Sussex, this was a challenge they were looking to overcome by creating more outdoor covered space so that their students could play outside no matter the weather and, crucially, be safe while doing so.

The school is a specialist autism institution that “provides individualised, aspirational education and care that inspires young people with autism to recognise their full potential and participate meaningfully in society.” An initial consultation with the school with a subsequent site visit enabled the Streetspace team to evaluate their available on-site space, advise on surfacing works, and outline some potential canopy solutions.

Proposed was an ORION Barrel Vault fabric canopy with a PVC-based tensile roof. Fabric canopies offer a great balance of shade and inclement weather protection, while absorbing the sound of rain, voices and echo to a greater extent than a hard roof covering such as polycarbonate or steel. The tall centreline of the ORION Barrel Vault also helps to create a spacious feel under the canopy, with these features ideal for outdoor play areas.

With plans to integrate a new group swing into the covered space, a priority for this project was to meet Critical Fall Height (CFH) requirements, considerations for structural height to ensure an appropriate clearance for students using the swing. Under British Standards EN 1177:2008, all play equipment with a free fall height above 0.6m requires a CFH certified flooring around the play equipment.

Meeting these requirements, Streetspace provided surfacing works as a resin-bonded rubber mulch with a CFH protection of 2.34m. With the group swing supplied by A E Evans Ltd, installation was provided by Streetspace as part of the full programme of works, alongside the manufacture, delivery and installation of the canopy.