Equipment for Schools
A school environment is challenging for children with disabilities and they need every help to overcome physical obstacles to enable to them to gain the maximum possible from their education. Schools can support them by ensuring that they have the right equipment to hand for the simple tasks, so making their daily experience better.
If a child with mobility and stability difficulties is to work well, they need to be secure and comfortable at their work station. This won’t be achieved by pushing a standard wheelchair up to a standard school desk. The chances are that the heights will not be compatible, and in any case, wheelchairs are designed as a mobility aid, not somewhere that a child is expected to sit comfortably for long periods of time. There are a number of specialist seats available for children to be comfortable and stable for long periods of time in school, or indeed home, environments. These seats will provide a stable base and good support for the whole of the pupil’s body. The best examples such as the Madita Posture Chair will typically have good height adjustability so they can be lowered to a level which allows the pupil to self transfer from a standard wheelchair and then be raised to a comfortable working level at the table or desk. A cost effective alternative could be Rokzi Chair Accessories which can fix to standard school chairs to provided added stability and security for children with disabilities. Height adjustable desks can also be very effective in enabling students with disabilities to work comfortably. Vision Desks from Ropox are expertly designed and can tilt and have magnetic surfaces to assist the user.
Just coming into school use are a range of sensory products which are proving helpful in calming pupils with ADHD or similar behavioural conditions. Ball blankets, cushions and chairs provide proprioceptive feedback (deep pressure stimulation, to help promote a sense of calm, and feelings of safety) and to assist the user in sensing the boundaries of their own bodies.
Schools also need to consider how they cater for people with profound mobility difficulties. British Standard BS 8300:2009 "Design of buildings and their approaches to meet the needs of disabled people" was published in 2009, and recommends that toilets meeting the minimum standards recommended by the Changing Places Consortium should be provided in larger buildings and complexes including educational establishments. A “Changing Places” toilet will provide hoist arrangements and height adjustable changing arrangements for users. Schools which are open for public use out of hours or which might have children, parents or grandparents with profound disabilities at school events will increasingly find a demand for such facilities, which go well beyond the requirements of standard accessible toilets.
Last changed: May 24 2010 at 3:16 PM
