Outdoor classrooms can come in all shapes and sizes with variants for school needs and budgets. The Hideout House Company offer a truly comprehensive and diverse range of these type of playground buildings which take in octagonal, rectangular and square designs and which can be “themed” too – we have outdoor classrooms for special educational needs (SEN), eco classrooms where the building itself becomes a natural learning resource and forest school settings. Our buildings are manufactured out of cedar wood which has numerous benefits over traditional timbers (such as pine) including the fact that they are virtually maintenance free and do not require any on-going maintenance or further treatment once installed and they will last longer.

Outdoor classrooms are very popular in schools as they encourage learning outside of the classroom and teach children about the natural environment – that it is the reason we have options such as sedum living roofs, water butt and guttering systems for rainwater harvesting, educational renewable energy systems such as mini wind turbine/solar panel/energy monitoring board and power units including a datalogger, in-built planters and mini eco ponds. For the building itself, we can add in wall panels, louvre opening and closing panels for the window apertures, benching, decking floor with non-slip decking, ramps, steps and trellis panelling.

And in certain instances, we are able to help with funding for these type of outdoor classrooms.slider8

How To Get A Quotation For An Outdoor Classroom

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We are very fortunate to get a lot of schools contacting us to say that they are interested in an outdoor classroom or shelter for their school and their outdoor learning programme. Quite rightly a lot of them ask how much are they?

Whilst we would love to publish a set price list, it is quite difficult to do so – let me explain why. First of all, we pride ourselves on offering perhaps one of the most comprehensive and diverse ranges of outdoor classrooms in the UK and in addition, we offer many variables and optional extras which a school can elect to have. Especially our eco options. Even when we have a school’s “wish list” for the specification of outdoor classroom they require, there are still other elements we need to know before committing to a final price. This includes knowing the location of the school (we need this to work out a delivery and installation price), what the access is like for our transport truck and installation crews (we typically work on a carry distance of no more than 50m where we can park our 7.5 tonne truck and assumes we cannot drive across any grass or playing field) and what the existing levels are like and finally whether the designated area is prone to flooding or holding water.

For some products we do however have price guides and these can be found by downloading on the relevant website pages or simply by emailing us on info@hideouthouse.com

But in order to point you in the right direction initially, we always need to know the following information first:

  1. What shape of outdoor classroom are you interested in? (we offer square, rectangular and octagonal)
  2. What size of building do you require or put another way are you trying to accommodate a certain amount of children?
  3. Do you need to have a building that is open sided/gazebo style or are you looking for something which is fully enclosed so that it can be used all year round?
  4. If you are looking at having a fully enclosed outdoor classroom (i.e one with walls, doors and windows), do you need to have it insulated or not? (this is really only worth doing if you are going to be heating it)
  5. Is there a budget or budget range we should be considering or working to? I know that some schools don’t like to initially offer this information but sometimes it does make it a lot easier to match what we can offer with what is affordable in the budget

Not essential but sometimes it is also useful to know what the building is going to be used for because we can then send you some examples of buildings (and costings) we have supplied to other schools who are using it for the same application.

We usually like to discuss the above with the school on the phone as we can then usually get a better feel for what you want and advise accordingly or sometimes in person if we need to do a site visit. But email communication is fine too.

And we are always on the look out for new ideas for products or ideas which might not be currently included in our range….so we look forward to hearing from you!

 

Sensory Outdoor Classroom Design

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sensory outdoor classroom

We were recently approached by a school who are looking to improve their outdoor learning activities in their grounds but with a special emphasis on making the whole environment sensory centric for their special needs children. They also wanted to make sure that it could be used all year round and provided adequate shelter from the weather but also had to feature an outside area where children could play as well.

So we looked at re-designing our standard 5m octagonal outdoor classroom to include various facets which would feature various sensory elements. First of all, we included some play panels (chosen by the school) which are mounted internally on posts at a height which the children easily play at.

The outdoor classroom features upper glass laminated panels to provide protection from the elements (as well as a full length canvas panel to the door/entrance) but we decided that some of these should be in coloured perspex to throw in different sensory light textures.

It has a water butt and guttering system installed as well for rainwater harvesting.

We also included a special extended external decking area with timber sub-frame base for the outside play requirement and as some children like to play on the floor, we are using a special anti-slip decking with rubber inlay.

For an extra special play feature, the design includes some sensory cubes which are covered in an artificial grass.

We are always looking to further our product offerings and to be adventurous and creative, so if your school has something special in mind please do get in contact with us to discuss your plans and thoughts.

 

The Roof System On An Outdoor Classroom

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Schools want the outdoor classrooms they buy to last them a long time obviously and this is one of the main tenets of assessing value for money when evaluating between suppliers. One of the main issues to look at however from a school’s perspective is obviously the quality of build and the materials used etc but from our experience, the main area to scrutinise is the construction of the roof as this is where any future issues will lie.

We at the Hideout House Company use a premium grade IKO armour glass felt shingle tile. These are lightweight, glass fibre based bitumen strip slates which are made for durability and will last for 50 years. They are available in a choice of colours although our standard is green but you can also have grey, terracotta red and black. We can also use cedar shingle tiles but these tend to be more expensive.

Below this (although you cannot see it post installation), we cover the whole of the roof in a waterproof membrane which stops any ingress of water causing timber rot and damage and roof leaks.

And then we use a log lap, tanalised to Grade 4 cathedral style ceiling which not only is designed to last because of the quality and treatment of timber but it also has a nice aesthetic.

Log lap underside of roof

We don’t use marine ply as a roof underdraw as this simply does not last as long and is prone eventually to suffering from rot and decay.

And we don’t use a single skin ship lap roof because over time, the picture below probably says more than we can in this instance!

 

We have a guide document which we can send to you which tells you how to assess the overall quality of outdoor classrooms when deciding upon suppliers.

For more information, please contact the Hideout House Company on 01832 275902 or email: info@hideouthouse.com

 

Prices, Quotes and Site Visits

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We are lucky enough to receive many enquiries from schools and other establishments who are looking to buy our products or kind of products. We will always endeavour to get back to you within a couple of days from your original approach and we do appreciate also that schools are sometimes at different stages of the buying or selection process – some are a bit unsure of what they want or where the product would be best suited at the site perhaps – whereas other enquiries can be a lot further on down the line, know exactly what they want and have the funding in place.

We will always help at whatever stage your school are at plus you can benefit from our 23 years of experience in this area – it is very rare nowadays that we cannot help or at least point you in the right direction. And of course we can offer alternative suggestions to what has already been proposed if we think this would be beneficial.

Of course the first question we get asked is  – can we have some prices? For some of our product range, we do have specific set price lists which we can easily send out to you but a lot of the work we carry out is tailored to the school’s individual needs where we can pull on our modular build process and our broad range of options. So in this respect it is quite difficult to “package” a price list per se as every job is different. But we can certainly get a budget price to you and send you lots of relevant photos of previous jobs once we have established the following from the school:

  1. The address or post code of the school – we need this information in order to be able to work out a delivery and installation (if so required) price
  2. Details about the site itself – what is the existing surface we would be installing onto (eg grass, tarmac, existing safety surfacing etc) and is it fairly level
  3. Access – how near can we get our transport truck to the designated site (we usually allow for a 40 – 50m carry as anything over that is classed as bad access)
  4. Budget – is there a budget or budget level we should be aware of
  5. Timescales – when are the school looking to have the product delivered or installed

Once we have had a conversation too about what product you are wanting or are able to go through and consider the various options your school are wanting, we can usually at this stage give you an indicative price – this can be presented in a formal quote if so required with corresponding photos or drawings.

Assuming the school wish to proceed further (usually after the project has been greenlighted by the Board of School Governors), we would then typically undertake a site survey in order to firm up on our quotation and provide drawings/layouts etc if so required.

Once this firm quote has been accepted, we send out an order acknowledgement confirming the agreed price and specification. Once this has been signed, the contract is fixed.

We do try and make the whole process as simple and enjoyable as possible.

For further information on our range, please call 01832 275902 or email info@hideouthouse.com

 

 

 

The Construction of An Outdoor Classroom

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Another question we get asked quite a lot from schools is how is the outdoor constructed on site and how long does it take? We do have quite a substantial range of outdoor classrooms and shelters within our range so obviously each one is different but we thought that it would be worthwhile taking one of our most popular and best sellers which is the 5m octagonal outdoor classroom. By way of easy explanation, each step is accompanied by a photo.

Typically this building takes 2-3 days to install so a minimal amount of time on site is required.

After the truck has arrived, our installation crews first of all unload all of the various components and carry these to the designated site at the school. Once this has been completed, the transport truck then leaves.

Now the building process begins:

The construction and assembly of the timber sub-frame base which has to be level

A membrane goes down and the decking floor is applied to the sub-base frame

The frame of the building with the half panel walls, support posts and ring-beam are constructed

The roof support system is then built

The underside of the roof starts which is a loglap tannalised (grade 4) roof section

The roof is then covered in a waterproof membrane to make it watertight

The felt shingle tiles then go on top of this and are laid in strips

Internal work on the benching begins to take shape

And hey presto, the finished article! Another classic high quality outdoor classroom from the Hideout House Company

For more information on the Hideout House range of outdoor classrooms, please do contact us on 01832 275902 or email: info@hideouthouse.com

 

 

Site Visits for Outdoor Classrooms

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We do get asked at the moment if we are still conducting site visits during the Covid pandemic and the answer is yes! We will obviously follow Government guidelines with regards to social distancing and if needs be, we don’t necessarily need to come into the school building and can meet you outside.

Prior to the visit, we do like to find out quite a bit about the project so that we can come fully prepared.  A typical pre-site visit discussion with our staff would involve ascertaining what kind of outdoor classroom you are actually interested in and indeed what it is intended to be used for – is it one of our open-sided gazebo style outdoor classrooms or one of our fully enclosed versions. This then typically drives what size of building your school requires and we would also need to know at this stage if there are specific budget parameters in mind. If your school wants an outdoor classroom which is fully enclosed, we also discuss with you whether  you need to have the building fully insulated (usually only worth doing if you are going to heat the building) and we go through the various modular options with you – for example roofing systems, double glazing, external timber claddings, floor coverings etc

When we actually come and undertake the site visit at your school, we are essentially looking at three principal issues – the first and perhaps most obvious is will it fit okay in the designated space. If space is an issue, we can always advise on other alternatives or shapes of buildings perhaps. Secondly, we look at ground conditions – what is the existing surface we will be installing the feature onto (eg grass, tarmac, safety surfacing etc) and is the ground level. This is quite important – for the majority of our outdoor classrooms, we can cater for a fall of no more than 300mm over say a 5m span. We do this by using our timber sub-frame base system which levels the floor without the need to lay a concrete base. If there is indeed a fall over the area, we typically add in more skirting on the area of the building where the fall is the greatest so that the outdoor classroom looks good and there are no nasty gaps showing. This work is undertaken on site by our qualified installers.

Last but not least, we need to look at access. In the majority of cases, our products are delivered to site on the back of a 7.5 tonne lorry so we need to ascertain how near we can get to the site with such a truck. Ideally, we need to work on a carry distance of no more than 50m.

Of course our site visits are free of charge.

For more information, please visit the Hideout House Company on www.hideouthouse.com or call 01832 275902

 

How To Compare Quality When Assessing Quotes For An Outdoor Classroom

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outdoor classrooms

With cedar shingle tile roof

How To Compare Quality When Assessing Quotes For An Outdoor Classroom

We totally understand and appreciate that you have to get at least three competitive quotes for your outdoor classroom/shelter project. And sometimes this can be quite daunting because although these buildings might initially all look the same, there are perhaps certain very important differences which you need to take into consideration before making the final decision on which supplier to use.

 What Is The Roof Structure?

This is where the majority of problems occur. You need to consider therefore what materials and the quality of these materials a company is providing.

  • If they are using a ship lap or timber weather board roof, what is the wood and is it treated in any way? If a cheap wood is being used (such as a white wood or untreated pine), it will eventually warp and bend leaving open cracks in the roof sections which will allow in moisture and the wet. Your outdoor classroom will therefore not be waterproof and will eventually be prone to rotting over a period of time which will eventually need replacing. This “cupping” effect could also force the timbers to come away from their supporting rafters, thereby exposing dangerous nails or screws which are a safety hazard to the children.
  • Is an underdrawn roof ceiling being installed at all and if so, what is the material being used? A lot of companies use plywood but you must ensure that it is a marine or exterior grade ply. If it is not, it will simply rot over a relatively quick period of time which will also cause it to bend or sag. To give absolute longevity however, it really should be a pressure treated plywood which has a greenish hue to it and which gives it added resistance to mold and mildew.
  • Do they use any kind of waterproof membrane at all on the roof?
  • We use a weather resistant, water absorbing armourglass felt shingle tile or cedar shingle tile which will last for 15 years plus. Below this, we install a waterproof membrane (to stop any excess water ingress) and our internal ceiling is an attractive solid log finish which is treated to a grade 4 tanalith level to give extra protection and longevity

What About Cracks and Shakes?

A piece of wood eventually grows cracks or “shakes” regardless of how well-dried it is. This inevitable occurrence is due to seasonal changes particularly in terms of the relative air humidity and timber trying to harmonize with its surrounding environment. Moreover, there are other significant influences that cause wood shrinkage.

The issue then is not how you can avoid seasonal wood shrinkage; the real question to ask is what the best thing is that can be done in order to slow down the shrinking process. One of the most important things to consider is good quality wood treatment. A good treatment basically controls how fast moisture enters and leaves the wood.

Round poles or posts for instance are often used for outdoor classrooms. However, these type of timbers suffer from radial cracking where they split or crack along the radius. It does not lessen the strength of the timber per se but if they open up too much, inquisitive children will undoubtedly try to stick their fingers in it and get splinters. And if the timber has not been treated in any way, these cracks will allow moisture to enter into the pith (heart) of the timber which will eventually exasperate the problem even more.

What Makes A Quality Treatment?

Preservative pressure treatments will significantly extend the service life of timber by providing an effective protection against all forms of wood decay and insect attack. Carried out in industrial treatment vessels by trained operators, treatments use a proven process of pressure and vacuum cycles to impregnate the wood preservative deep and permanently into the timber cells.

The eventual end use of preservative treated timber is classified into one of five main categories. These Use Classes, defined in BS EN 335-1, are based on the potential threat to the timber from decay or insect attack in its eventual application.

You also need to ensure that if the timber support legs for an outdoor classroom are being dug into the ground, extra protection is put around each post. If this is not done, the timber leg will completely rot underground from the damp ground conditions.

We only use Class 4 timbers which affords the highest degree of protection. And we always use Post Saver sleeves for timbers which are dug into the ground and are proven to prevent ground rot. Post Saver sleeves will save you money, time and material failures in the future.

For further information on our outdoor classrooms range, please call us on 01832 275902 or email us on info@hideouthouse.com

 

Nurture and Sensory Room Solutions for Schools

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7.1m x 4.2m pod

We have been asked a lot recently by schools for a nurture or sensory room facility. This is loosely defined as somewhere children can go – either as an individual or within small groups plsu teacher support – where they can have some quiet and relaxing time and space for themselves. Some time out shall we say away from the hubbub of the busy school day. And because this has to be somewhere quiet, the schools are wanting a facility which is not in the main school building but somewhere set apart in the school grounds or playing fields.

And this is where we can help as the brief to us is usually that the building has to be something special too which is conducive to relaxation, wellbeing, mindfulness and calm and is therefore different from any other room within the school.

Our range of outdoor classroom pods and enclosed outdoor classrooms is therefore ideal for this application. The outdoor classroom pods have quite a distinct style to them and are pre-manufactured units which means that they come delivered to site – already constructed – by a specialist transport truck. They are then either craned onto site or fork lifted. This means that there is very limited time on site at the school, thereby causing minimal disruption to the overall school day. If so required, these classroom pods can include full insulation, electrics, lighting, plumbing and heating and on the bigger sized pods, we can include an inclusive WC and washbasin.

Our enclosed outdoor classrooms are available in a range of sizes and shapes. The most popular ones tend to be either the 4m or 5m octagonal versions but we can also offer both square and rectangular. These buildings are modular so you can change the configuration of the window and door panels. Like the pods, options include for insulation, timber sub-frame base, internal benches and a renewable energy kit including a solar panel and wind turbine.

If would you like to discuss your requirements for a sensory or nurture room at your school or book in a site visit, please contact us on 01832 275902 and email: simon@hideouthouse.com

5m enclosed outdoor classroom in pine with felt shingle tile roof

The Extension of Our Outdoor Classroom Pod Family

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Classroom Pod

We launched a couple of years an idea for an outdoor classroom “pod”. Pod being defined as a unit which is a bit more distinctive and unique in design than your run-of-the-mill outdoor classroom and which typically is a pre-manufactured unit (as opposed to the traditional build on site building). The idea for our pod design – with the large painted round Hobbit-style door – originally came to the school’s market by chance as we had originally developed this product for the glamping industry where people could stay in it overnight as a paying guest.

It just so happened that a head teacher was staying in one for a short break on the North Yorkshire moors and loved it so much that she contacted us to see if it could be used as an outdoor learning provision at her school. And so the outdoor classroom pod for schools was borne!

Schools have since been using them for a whole host of applications – mainly as an outdoor classroom provision, library, learning hub, break out or nurture room and even as a staff room!

The pod is a pre-manufactured unit which is totally completed in our factory (included electrics and insulation if so required) and is then delivered to the school on a back of a special delivery truck. Once we are on site, we then either fork lift or crane the pod into its final position.

And we can also supply special ground screw foundation systems if so required.

The size of the current pod is 4m x 2.4m but such has been its popularity, we are asked quite frequently if we can supply anything bigger but still keeping the overall “pod” look and feel. This is really because I think schools are wanting something a bit different to liven up their playgrounds and actually make it more interesting and inspiring for the children to want to actual go in.

So we have answered this brief and now have a new range of larger pods. These have high quality metro tile roof systems and are either externally clad in thermowood, canexel ( a kind of plastic wood) or cedar for longevity and low maintenance. They are available in the following sizes and with the standard specification:

Sizes:

7200mm x 3100mm

8200mm x 3100mm

7200mm x 4100mm

8200mm x 4100mm

Specification:

Galvanised steel chassis for ease of movement

Canexel Cladding with a choice of colours

Metrotile Roof choice of colours

Windows & Doors Upvc choice of colours

Interior Walls Vinyl boards

Flooring Vinyl

Standard toilet and basin

LPG or Electric Water heater

Panel heaters 

Down lights white positions

Exterior lights in entrance porch

Standard white sockets and switches 

Standard smoke detector and extinguisher plus carbon monoxide if so required

Internal partitioning if so required

 

For further information on these pods, please contact the Hideout House Company on 01832 275902 or email: simon@hideouthouse.com

 

 

Answers to FAQs on Outdoor Classrooms

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We frequently get asked about certain information relating to our outdoor classrooms so we thought that we would provide answers to the most common ones below:

  1. What size do I need? The answer to this is usually driven by three mitigating factors – how many children are you wanting to accommodate in the building; will it fit in the area you have designated at the school and somewhat crucially nowadays, what is the overall budget in mind? But as a general rule of thumb, if you are looking to cater for a class of 30 children, then a 5m octagonal or 5 x 4m rectangular outdoor classroom would suffice. A smaller 4m octagonal would fit 22 children. This is assuming you are a primary school as nurseries could probably fit in more children to these above sizes.
  2. Does it need to have a base? If we are siting the outdoor classroom onto an existing hard surface (such as tarmac, concrete, patio slabs etc), then typically it doesn’t require a supporting base. If however we are going to be siting onto grass or an uneven area, then yes the building will require a base. This can be done by either having a timber sub-frame base, concrete pads or ground screw fixing systems. We can advise on this after having conducted a site survey when we can ascertain the ground conditions and levels.
  3. Does the building need insulation? This question really only relates to our enclosed outdoor classrooms and not our open sided gazebos. We do offer classrooms with insulation options but we really only advise going to this extra cost if you are intending on heating the building. But remember too that insulation keeps heat in and keeps heat out as well so in the warmer summer months, the inside temperature is not too oppressive. For some of our buildings, we do offer cedar external cladding and cedar shingle tiles for the roof because cedar has the highest natural insulating properties of all softwoods
  4. How long does it take to install? The answer to this question is very much dependent upon the specification of the outdoor classroom we would be supplying to the school but in the main, an outdoor classroom gazebo would be installed within a couple of days and the larger enclosed versions would take an average of a week on site. Our pods however can be installed within a couple of hours as they are pre-manufactured units which are delivered to site on the back of a truck and either craned into position or fork lifted.
  5. What guarantees do you give? One year guarantee against faulty workmanship and materials and 15 years against timber rot, degradation or decay on the cedar and 10 years on the redwood pine
  6. What are the roof options? On our rectangular outdoor classrooms, you can either have a hipped roof with either felt or cedar shingle tiles (which is the most common) or a mono pitch pent roof. For our gazebos, we offer a choice of options for the roof coverings – these are felt shingle tiles (available in three different colours), cedar shingle tiles or a marine grade canvas (available in different colours). In some instances, we have supplied roofs with the very eco friendly sedum but these do tend to be quite a bit more expensive
  7. Do I need planning permission? On our blog site, we have answered this question in some quite expansive detail but if you have any questions, do let us know as it is one of the most frequently asked questions
  8. Do I need building regs? For the majority of our outdoor classroom range, the answer is no
  9. Do you offer any promotional support? Yes we do. We run a couple of programmes on this – one being our customer referral system whereby we will commission your school or PTA if you recommend us to another school and a sale ensues. Or if your school can feature our product on your website with a reference to our company, then we will offer a discount on the sale price.
  10. Can you do site visits? Most emphatically yes. We will always want to do this anyway before a sale is committed to as we need to undertake a site survey of the area. But we also obviously like to meet with the school staff and school councils to talk through the various options and get a better idea as to what is the best solution
  11. What options do you offer? We like to think that we offer the most comprehensive range of additional options – these range from renewable energy systems including wind, solar and pedal power, upper side panels, water butt and roof guttering. For the enclosed range, options include French for bi-fold doors, insulation and atrium roof. More information can be seen on the link below
  12. optional extras
  13. Can you offer advice on funding? Again very much so. We have put together our own comprehensive funding guide for schools (which includes details on grants, corporate sponsorship & donations, how to rent out existing school facilities plus crowdfunding details too) if you wanted to look at sourcing and applying for funds yourself…or we can put you in touch with funding consultants who specialise in the educational sector. We also run a blog on funding issues for schools which I have copied you in on the link:https://www.hideouthouse.com/category/funding/

    For further information on the outdoor classroom range from the Hideout House Company, please contact us on 01832 275902 or email: info@hideouthouse.com