We do get asked every now and again for “what is the cheapest thing you can supply?”. We do appreciate that budgets are tight in schools and that you need to prove value for money in your overall buying criteria and selection processes.

The word “cheap” sometimes causes me a bit of concern however because in my book, cheap is usually associated with poor quality and short working life spans of the particular product in question. As a company, we don’t really do “cheap” if it means low quality because the economics simply don’t work. A low price might lure you in initially but you will spend a lot of money over the years on snagging and maintenance and it will not last as long as one product will do if manufactured to a higher quality and standard. If you add in these factors, the product which is “reassuringly expensive” would be the better option for value for money.

But if you are after a product which is of good quality but is lower down the pricing matrix, you might want to consider our outdoor classrooms with a canvas roof. Usually our roofs used on our outdoor classrooms have a felt shingle tile, then a waterproof membrane and then a log ceiling underdraw. But this can easily be replaced with a canvas roof instead to drive down the cost a bit.

The canvas we use is a PU coated, marine grade canvas which is available in a range of colours – blue, green, yellow, red, vanilla and maroon. Usually the darker the colour, the greater the UV resistance. We already use these canvas roofs on our outdoor shelters but we simply adapt these shelters to include for a timber decked floor, sub-frame base, lower level panels to three sides and internal benching.

These type of outdoor classrooms are available in a range of sizes – namely 3m x 3m, 4m x 4m, 5m x 5m and 5m x 3m.

We can also supply roll-down canvas panels as well to the windows and door which afford you extra protection against the elements by allowing the outdoor classroom to be “fully enclosed”. And if needs be, we can use a special grade of canvas which has fire retardant properties built into it.

Prices start at £4,350 + VAT

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

We know that schools have to get at least three competitive quotes for any project they are considering over a certain amount of money and that this subsequently has to be signed off by the board of Governors. And we also totally appreciate that when considering the quotes and options in front of them, value for money..or proving value for money…has to be taken into account.

Sometimes we may not always be the cheapest quote on the table – but then again, there will always be someone else cheaper than the cheapest one. But in our book, we stand by the expression “buy cheap, buy twice” because you will always get what you pay for and the savings you think you are making will soon be lost. Or could even cost you a lot more money.

And that is why we beat the drum of the quality of the product which should be one of the most important deciding factors. Using high quality materials means that they will stand up to the rigorous demands of a school playground and they will last. And will typically require less maintenance over the given life period of the product.

For our outdoor classrooms for instance, we never use plywood or single boarding for the roof as they will eventually rot and leak over time. We use a felt shingle tile, then a waterproof membrane and with a log ceiling underdraw so it will not leak, rot or decay. The timbers we use for the main classroom building are grade 4 tanalised to give greater protection against timber rot, infestation and decay and to give longevity.

Our adventure trim trail products are manufactured out of recycled plastic as opposed to traditional timber because recycled plastic will outlast timber five times..and will never rot or decay even for the section which is dug into the ground.

Guarantees, customer service and previous work/testimonials should also be taken into consideration.

The forest school programme is now firmly entrenched and practised in many schools in the UK – both in urban and town/city settings and allows participating children to benefit from real-life outdoor experiences in a woodland or natural environment.

And we have found from our merry travels visiting schools up and down the country that there is a set pattern to the kind of products they are looking for to help with this initiative.

So this blog serves as a guide to what we can offer in this respect as the Hideout House Company.

Open Air Fire Pits

Preparing and lighting camp fires is an essential part of the overall forest schools programme. Some schools – especially those in urban settings – unfortunately do not have the benefit of a wooded or forest environment actually on their school grounds so they usually opt for hiving off a part of their playing fields for this purpose.

In this respect, we are able to build a fire pit seating area which consists of woodland type rustic style benching, a fire pit and a stone gravel floor encased in a solid timber edging surround. Or if the area is bigger, we can use bark instead of gravel.

The fire pit areas can be built according to the amount of children using them, space and of course budget.

Fire Pit Shelters

Schools  – as well as wanting a fire pit – are also wanting to provide for some kind of shelter from the elements when the weather is not so nice. So we have combined the two with our fire pit shelter.

This comes in two variants. The first is an open sided octagonal gazebo whereby we have a ventilation hole in the roof to allow for the fire smoke to easily exhaust out of. These fire pit gazebos also come with internal benching (we have two sizes – 4m which caters for a class of 22 children or a bigger version at 5m which is designed for a class of 30) and half panel walls. These half panel walls allow for extra protection but they are also structural and bind the building together to stop it from racking.

We also can apply two coats of a fire retardant varnish to the underside of the roof.

Another option in this range is our 4m x 4m cooking shelter which has internal benching to three sides, the option of roll-down canvas panels to the sides and a special fire pit cum cooking facility in the middle which has a central flue going through the roof.

Or if you didn’t want to have an actual fire pit in the middle, we can always just supply one of our outdoor shelters with a marine grade PU coated canvas roof. These are available in three sizes and a choice of colours for the canvas roof – plus an additional optional extra is to have full length roll-down canvas panels to the sides.

 

Fire Pit Cabins

These are proving to be extremely popular as they also have quite a distinct and Hobbit like style to them. Perfect therefore for a wooded setting. Like the afore-mentioned cooking shelter, these cabins have a central fire pit and cooking facility with exhaust flue.

They are available in four different sizes and as they are fully enclosed, they allow for all year round use. And of course in the winter, you simply have to light the fire to keep cosy and warm inside. Optional extras allow for insulation, internal benching and tables, sun pipe, timber sub-frame base and roof windows to allow in more natural light.

They are built using premium materials including Arctic pine and a felt shingle tile roof with a pine ceiling under draw (the felt shingles are available in three different colours).

And they are usually installed on site within a couple of days so minimal inconvenience to the school.

And what’s more, the children absolutely love them and I have heard them being described over the years as many things – the Hansel and Gretel House, Hobbit House, Hideout Den etc

 

 

 

Such has been the success of our playground trim trail equipment manufactured out of recycled plastic, we have now extended out the range to make other products out of this special material. We have especially focused on those products which are most likely to be exposed to damaging elements or materials daily through the sheer application of the product – so for example mud kitchens where they are going to have a lot of mud and water poured over them; sandboxes with wet sand; planters with damp soil etc

Recycled plastic lasts a lot longer than the traditionally used timber equivalent so it is definitely worth considering for these type of products as you will get such a longer life span and more importantly, it will never rot.

The range now includes sandboxes, mud kitchens, playboats, planters, mud tables and benches.

These products can be seen on the link given below:

https://www.hideouthouse.com/recycled-plastic-playground-products/

Play equipment in schools has traditionally been made out of timber (in public play parks steel is more common due to vandalism issues) and for good reasons. It is attractive and easy to work with but it can’t withstand the rain and the cold for too long. Time consuming on-going maintenance does certainly help but the fact is that it can’t last forever and why eventually it has to be replaced.

But this is not the case with recycled plastic which due to its unique composition has many, many advantages which are listed below:

• Durability – the material is resistant to all weathers and can therefore be used all year round; it will not rot; it is splinter free so low risk of injury and it is moisture repellent. Unlike timber, it does not absorb water at all and is even resistant to salt water.
• Economical – there are a lot of savings for customers. It is low maintenance and on-going service costs are minimal plus it has a long service life (5 times that of timber for example).
• Eco Friendly – recycled plastic is produced without preservatives, is sustainable and friendly to the environment, reduces the strain on landfill and is non-polluting.

As a result of the above benefits, recycled plastic is also ideal for products in schools where there is a high exposure to elements which will cause timber to eventually rot – such as water, mud, soil, sand etc. That is why we are now using it for our planters, sandboxes, water walls, mud kitchens, bark pit edging and dipping pond platforms.

In fact the applications are endless!

For more information on our recycled plastic product range, please visit www.hideouthouse.com or call 01832 275902 or email: info@hideouthouse.com