BS EN 1729 Chair and Table Guide These standards supersede the old British standards BS 5873-1:1980, BS 5873-2:1991, DD ENV1729-1:2001, BS5873-3:1985 and DD ENV1729-2:2001 which are now obsolete. Whilst most existing school furniture will pass BS EN 1729 part 2, the fundamental changes to compliant furniture design are in BS EN 1729 part 1 which relates to the appropriate size, shape and ergonomic design of classroom furniture to maintain good posture and reduce RSI and back pain in school children. A guide to purchasing school furniture with compliance to the British and European Standards The British and European Standards for “Chairs and tables for educational institutions” were approved in January 2007. The standards are: BS EN 1729 part 1 – Functional dimensions BS EN 1729 part 2 – Safety requirements and test methods SIZEMARK 1 SIZEMARK 2 SIZEMARK 3 SIZEMARK 4 To help you purchase furniture that complies to the British and European standards, the following Sizemark guide indicates which fixed seat heights and table heights are suitable for the child’s age or key stage. SIZEMARK 5 SIZEMARK 6 Height mm 1100 1060 STANDING TABLE HEIGHT 1000 1000 900 880 800 760 760 700 670 600 640 590 590 530 500 460 460 430 400 CHAIR HEIGHT 380 350 310 300 TABLE HEIGHT 710 260 200 100 0 3 4 NURSERY 5 6 7 8 KS1 9 10 11 KS2 12 13 14 PRIMARY 15 KS4 KS3 16 17 18 Age POST 16 SECONDARY ADJUSTABLE FURNITURE SIZE A ADJUSTABLE FURNITURE SIZE B RECOMMENDED SIZEMARK PERCENTAGES PER CLASSROOM School Year Nursery Keystage 1 Keystage 2 Keystage 3 SIZEMARK 1 SIZEMARK 2 SIZEMARK 3 SIZEMARK 4 SIZEMARK 5 SIZEMARK 6 Implications 100% Small 4 year olds may find the chairs slightly too high 100% 33.33% Purchasing furniture across three year groups will lead to a higher degree of mismatch. As each classroom will have two sizes of chairs, a degree of classroom management is required to ensure correct fit (ie children sit at the appropriate height chair) 66.66% Tall 13 year olds may find chairs slightly too low 100% Keystage 4 100% Short 14 year olds may find chairs slightly too high Post 16 100% Very short students may find chairs slightly too high and very tall students may find chairs slightly too low A more accurate guide to purchasing the correct height furniture for the individual child in compliance with the standards is to measure the stature and the Popliteal height of the child and then to match those measurements with the following sizemark guide. Stature • Popliteal height defines the correct seat height. The measurement is taken from the floor to the back of the knee when seated with thighs horizontal and lower leg vertical with feet flat to the floor. • Stature is from floor to the top of the head. Standing Work Height • Sitting work height defines the correct table height. The measurement is determined by sitting elbow height which is the distance from the floor to the underside of the elbow whilst sitting with the upper arm vertical and the lower arm horizontal. Sitting Work Height • Standing work height defines the correct standing table height. The measurement is determined by standing elbow height which is the distance from the floor to the underside of the elbow of a standing person with the upper arm vertical and lower arm horizontal. Popliteal Height COLOUR CODE ORANGE FEET VIOLET FEET YELLOW FEET RED FEET GREEN FEET BLUE FEET SIZE MARK 1 2 3 4 5 6 AGE RANGE 3 4-5 6 -7 8 - 10 11 - 13 14 - 18 POPLITEAL HEIGHT RANGE 250 - 280 280 - 315 315 - 355 355 - 405 405 - 435 435 - 485 STATURE RANGE 930 - 1150 1080 - 1210 1190 - 1420 1330 - 1590 1460 - 1765 1590 - 1880 STANDING TABLE HEIGHT 590 670 760 880 1000 1060 TABLE HEIGHT 460 530 590 640 710 760 CHAIR HEIGHT 260 310 350 380 430 460 The best way to provide the best fit furniture for each individual pupil is to provide adjustable furniture. Adjustable furniture should cover two or more size marks and should be easily identifiable by size mark colour codes. The adjustability should be easy to operate without the need for excessive force or specialised tools. Adjustable furniture can be costly, but will provide the best fit to children. Furniture must be easy and quick to adjust to avoid disruption to lessons. Children will need to be trained in the use of such furniture. It will require a degree of classroom management to ensure correct fit. All educational furniture pages in this catalogue will be marked with the following logos to inform you whether the furniture featured is fully/partially or non compliant to EN1729 Part 1 and 2. Not compliant to EN1729 Part 1 Based on Figures NA.1, NA.3 and Table NA.1 from BS EN 1729-1:2006. British Standards can be obtained in PDF format from the BSI online shop: http://www.bsi-global.com/en/Shop/ or by contacting BSI Customer Services for hard copies:Tel: +44 (0)20 8996 9001, Email: mailto:[email protected] If you require further assistance please call 0116 294 4059