With many people’s memories of school featuring lines of lockers filled with books, bags and stationery, have times really changed that much? Are lockers still as important in the modern schooling world?

The short answer would be yes. The number of books and stationery the average student needs on a day to day basis hasn’t changed all that much, especially if you consider adding a laptop or tablet to that load too. Medical experts specify that children should not carry more than 10% of their body weight, particularly on their backs. A recent study found that some children are carrying up to 20%, exceeding this recommendation. Lockers are a perfect solution to this problem.

There are many other benefits to providing your school with long lasting lockers too:

- They can provide space for staff to keep their belongings secure during the school day, away from reach of children.
- Pupils have a safe place to store items, rather than the commonly used classroom drawers. This can be particularly useful for items such as phones and tablets, or other items that you don’t want distracting in classrooms.
- Students can also gain a sense of responsibility for their own belongings and encourage them to keep a tidy workspace.

There are a variety of options when it comes to choosing school lockers. Their simple guide will help you decide what’s right for your school.

Size
Many other lockers suppliers only offer a full-size locker and a Low-Level Locker. However, with over 40 years of experience working with the education industry, Helmsman have determined the ideal height of their school lockers for different age groups. Due to this, they manufacture three standard heights of school lockers.

- Key Stage 1 Lockers at 1200mm
- Key Stage 2 Lockers 1600mm
-Full Sized Lockers at 1800mm

Of course, as they manufacture all their products to order in their Bury St Edmunds factory, they can also provide bespoke sizes and solutions for your school lockers. Whether this is to fit in a specific sized area, or to allow for additional compartments, Helmsman can discuss a fully bespoke option for your project.

Compartments
Important things to consider when choosing your compartment options are how many students you are needing to cater for? What items will they be keeping in their lockers? And do you expect either of these answers to change in the future?

Their Key Stage 1 and 2 lockers can be supplied with 1 to 3 compartments, and their full-sized lockers can be manufactured with 1 to 6 compartments.

Material
Before deciding what material you want your lockers to be manufactured from, you’ll need to decide on a few other factors first.

Where will the lockers be situated? If they are going to be in a potentially wet area like a changing room, you’re going to need wet specification lockers with the body manufactured from stainless steel and aluminium. If they’re going in a corridor, you’ll just need a dry specification locker produced from mild steel.

What are they being used for? The standard choice for school lockers is usually metal. Their metal locker door frames have added strength and security and can be manufactured from mild steel or zinc plated metal. If your lockers are in high traffic areas and likely to be bumped, scratched or caught, a laminate door provides a more heavy-duty option.

What’s the budget? If you’re looking to keep costs down, a metal locker door will be the cheapest option, and their Helmsman lockers will stand the test of time. However, for a long lasting, heavy duty and more stylish looking locker, you could consider laminate doors. Whilst they are a more expensive option, the material will do much better at withstanding scratches, dents and scuffs, and perhaps save you money on repairs in the long run.

Colour
Helmsman’s school lockers come in a variety of colours and finishes. Their metal lockers can be powder coated in a range of colours, from the classic Royale blue to Pumpkin orange or Blush pink. They also have a selection of brilliant laminate suppliers, meaning they can offer bright pops of colour, wood effect laminates, and even carbon neutral options. They can match your school colour scheme, or even provide different coloured lockers for different sections of the building to help split up the allocation process, its entirely up to you.

Locks
As standard, their School Lockers come complete with either Cam locks or Hasp locks included in the price. These are both great options for school lockers, with the students simply needing either a key or a padlock. Master keys can also be provided for cam locks should students lose their keys.

Other options include combination locks, digital locks and more.

Extras
They offer a variety of extras with their lockers at Helmsman. A particularly popular option with school lockers are sloping tops. These are designed to stop any items being placed on top of the lockers, keeping the area tidy and clutter free. Stands can be provided to lift the lockers from the ground, and seat stands can be a helpful addition to lockers within changing rooms.

For more information on their school lockers, or to talk to a member of the experienced team, call on 01284 727626 or fill out the contact form here.