Canopies UK takes on biggest school challenge yet!

The country's leading canopy manufacturer and installer, Canopies UK, has completed the largest contract in the company's history: a 310 metre long canopy, creating a covered walkway for Collingwood College in Camberley, Surrey.

No stranger to educational work - Canopies UK has installed more than 3000 canopies for schools nationwide, where they are used as covered play areas, parents' waiting shelters, bike sheds and covered walkways. Sales Director Jason Eastwood explains: “More and more schools are keen to develop the potential of their outdoor areas, especially with OFSTED and the 'Every Child Matters' Manifesto strongly promoting outdoor learning.”

Collingwood College Bursar Tony Leggett said: “We decided as it was a substantial canopy we would approach five of the largest companies to quote for the project... following a meeting with Surrey Council it was agreed that Canopies UK should do the work as they offered the best value with a product which was to the specification the school required.”

Thanks to the company's extensive experience in this sector, Canopies UK was able to quickly organise all the relevant site calculations and health and safety requirements before working closely with Building Control to ensure the project ran smoothly. All canopies manufactured by the company are fully tested to BS6399 (the British standard for wind and snow loading) and all installation teams are CRB checked.

From start to finish, the contract took five weeks to complete and involved working seven days a week to minimise disruption to the school. Tony Leggett added: “Canopies UK's workforce has been excellent, always helpful and polite and accommodating any request put to them. The communication with them was first class and ensured 2000 children could live a normal day during term time, which is great considering the scale of the project. The canopy has been described as the umbilical cord of the school, tying both sides of the school together stylishly and functionally.

Schools should encourage children to seek shade, say professionals

Following a recent news article from the BBC reporting that almost 40% of pupils have suffered from sunburn whilst at school, there has been a call for mandatory 'sun safety' policies to be put in place across all UK schools. The survey, carried out on 1,000 parents, was commissioned by MPs on the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Skin, and according to Skin Cancer UK's Richard Clifford, the results are “entirely unacceptable and guidelines need to be set.”

For schools looking to provide sun protection for children, Canopies UK can provide the ideal solution.

Canopies UK Sales Director, Jason Eastwood, said: “We offer a wide range of outdoor canopies for schools, that can provide protection from the sun's harmful rays. Fabric-sail canopies and awnings will provide natural shade, while our quality cantilever canopies and free-standing GRP canopies have a Melinex gel coating which acts as a translucent UVA filter, playing a vital part in protecting children from sunburn.

“It's important that children are protected from the sun while at school, and as they have delicate skin, getting sunburnt can increase the risk of skin cancer later in life. Providing enough shade is crucial to any school's policy designed to promote the safe enjoyment of the sun.” New figures unveiled by Cancer Research UK shows there are more skin cancer deaths in the UK than Australia. The latest figures are part of a joint campaign with the Government to raise skin cancer awareness. The skin cancer rate in Australia has levelled off thanks to public education, and the campaign there began 20 years before the dangers of skin cancer were raised in Britain.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) advises schools to encourage children to seek shade whenever possible and to adopt sun safety measures. Calls for policies to be put in place follow complaints from the parents of a 10 year old girl who suffered severe sunburn at a school sports day. The school, near Swansea, said that parents were welcome to come in at lunchtime to apply sun cream, but it would be impossible for teachers to apply cream to the 200 pupils attending the school.

There are other measures that schools can put in place to protect children from the sun however. Thanks to Canopies UK, creating a shaded area that can be used for break times, outdoor learning and eating areas can be quick, simple and stress-free. Our installation teams are efficient and courteous and every individual has been CRB checked.

Speak to Canopies UK today about what outdoor canopy solutions are available to you.

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Canopies

Canopy at Cornmeadow Nursery, Worcestershire

Installed at Cornmeadow Nursery, Worcestershire. Our cantilevered canopy provided a covered play area for the children, without any hazards or obstructions at the far end. The canopy was finished in brown to match the building and natural surroundings.

Canopy at St John's Primary, Gloucester

The benefit of this canopy has already been felt by the school and now provides protection during play time no matter what the weather.

Canopy installed at a family centre, Essex

Our cantilevered canopy was installed at this family centre in Essex to provide shade and shelter for their outdoor play area. The canopy also shielded the area from the flats situated above the family centre.

White House Preparatory School, Berkshire

We were asked if we could install a canopy to cover an area used by the children to play beneath.

However the canopy needed to be fitted against an existing balcony, so we manufactured custom posts to fit against their existing posts, thus enabling the canopy to be installed, whilst at the same time managing to keep the end of the canopy post free.

We also manufactured the steelwork and the main part of the canopy in the schools preferred colours.

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Play Area Canopies

Covered Play Area, Rampton Primary, Retford

Our patented cantilevered canopy was installed at Rampton Primary School, Retford to offer shade and protection to their play area. The use of a side panel here was used to offer added protection from side winds.

Play Area Canopy, Thrumpton Primary, Retford

A large canopy was installed at Thrumpton Primary, Retford to create a sheltered play area for their reception class.

Play Area Canopy at Hillside Primary, Ipswich

We were asked to provide a shelter for a play area ,and our canopy was chosen because it did not have any posts at the front end making it a safer environment for the children to play under.

Play Area Cover at Leaps and Bounds Nursery

Leaps and Bounds Nursery in Birmingham required a canopy to provide shelter for waiting parents and also provide a covered storage / play area . The problem was that the available space was limited. However using specially adapted brackets we were able to raise the height of the canopy and cover the area without the need for posts at the far, keeping the area hazard free.

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Free Standing Canopies

External Dining Canopy, Cardinal Wiseman School, Birmingham

Cardinal Wiseman School in Birmingham, wanted to extend their dining facilities. With little space inside the school, our canopy system was the perfect choice for an external solution.

Canopy Installed at Leamington Community School, Liverpool

Leamington Community School approached us with a unique problem, they wanted the "umbrella" style canopy but disliked the idea of a fabric system due to potential vandalism, and durability issues. Our system provides a long lasting solution with stunning results.

Canopy at Willowfield Lower School, Luton

This permanent canopy was erected to provide shelter to a newly installed seating area at Willowfield Nursery School, Luton.

To complete the overall appearance of the seating area, the canopy was colour-coded to match the picnic tables beneath.

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Walkway Canopies

Walkway, Collingwood College, Surrey

Canopies UK, has completed the largest contract in the company's history: a 310 metre long canopy, creating a covered walkway for Collingwood College in Camberley, Surrey.

From start to finish, the contract took five weeks to complete and involved working seven days a week to minimise disruption to the school. Collingwood College Bursar Tony Leggett said: “Canopies UK's workforce has been excellent, always helpful and polite and accommodating any request put to them. The communication with them was first class and ensured 2000 children could live a normal day during term time, which is great considering the scale of the project.”

Walkway, Sir Frederick Osborn School, Welwyn Garden City

Canopies UK, Designed and installed a group of walkway canopies at Sir Frederick Osborn School, to offer shade and protection from building to building throughout the premises.

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