Headington School – Science Lab Refurbishment

The future’s bright for students with inspiring new science labs

Founded in 1915, Headington School is an independent girls’ school committed to providing a stimulating and enriching environment for teaching and learning through first-class facilities and resources. Over the last decade, Headington has invested a significant amount in enhancing their  facilities and as part of the refurbishment works, the school were looking to modernise the existing labs.

The Brief

Science is a key strength at Headington School and whilst the science faculty building has been constructed fairly recently, the labs no longer met the needs of modern teaching and learning methods.

With the increase in practical teaching across a range of disciplines, the school were looking to improve the facilities to enable students to carry out experiments in the best possible environment.

Innova’s brief was to mirror the quality of laboratories at leading universities in a refurbishment that expanded  across four laboratories and two prep rooms.

The Solution

Innova provided a full turnkey solution, including design, manufacture and installation of all furniture as well as M&E works, flooring, ceilings, decoration, heating and extract.

The teaching staff were an integral part of the design process. Innova interpreted their ideas to create unique layouts for both biology and chemistry disciplines, giving teachers the freedom to tailor learning environments to their needs.

The chemistry labs were installed with Innova’s wing  layout to  give teachers greater control of the learning environment whilst shortening the lines of communication. This versatile solution accommodates both practical and theory work within the same space, with services located on the front face of the benching to allow enough room for theory lessons, but easy access to gas and electric points for practical sessions.

A pebble pod layout has transformed the biology labs into a professional workplace, allowing students to carry out experiments more efficiently and to work together collaboratively. This concept has the flexibility to adapt to a range of teaching needs and curriculum requirements, allowing students to work in smaller groups whilst having access to gas and electric services on the front face of each unit.

To help Headington further maximise the space available in each lab, both perimeter benching and the work benches were fitted with storage, providing students with instant access to equipment when performing science experiments.

Two open plan prep rooms offer a spacious environment for lesson preparation and storage. Perimeter units provide a safe, secure storage solution for chemicals and equipment, whilst a central preparation desk has been installed to give technicians space to set up practical lessons.

High quality, low maintenance materials such as Velstone solid surface guarantee the longevity and good looks across the new laboratories, creating a modern yet timeless feel to a science department designed to inspire future generations of scientists.