Morleys guide to the new European Standards - EN 1729
Does your Classroom Furniture conform to the new EN 1729 standards?
As any good supplier will tell you choosing the right furniture for your school requires a number of considerations
including the following:
• Value-for-money
• Co-ordinating furniture
Choose furniture that has been designed to co-ordinate with other items. This is not just about 'the look',
i.e. storage units might all contain the same size trays
• Strength and stability of the furniture
The best way to ensure this is to buy furniture that has been manufactured to furniture standards,
e.g. BS
4875 and 5873 and now EN 1729
• Ergonomics
- The wrong choice of chair could result in back pain. Remember that the height of a chair
should relate to
the height of a table.
• Creative use of furniture
Can furniture be used as space dividers for work areas?
• Multi-functional furniture
Specialised furniture can have limited use and therefore tie up floor space.
• Maintenance
Are there any components which would be difficult or expensive to repair or replace?
• A range of furniture
• Spaces can be interchangeable and flexible in their use of furniture
Buying educational furniture is important and you will need to get the right equipment for the job. It is essential
that you take a long term view of your needs and those of your pupils and students. Research has shown that
quality, ergonomically designed furniture improves concentration and reduces fidgeting, leading to better results.
There are many elements of the decision making process for buying classroom furniture. To stand the test of
time, furniture should meet the relevant quality standards of strength and stability. A good starting point is the
BESA (British Educational Suppliers Association) website www.besanet.org or FIRA (Furniture Industry Research
Association) website www.fira.co.uk. Any reputable supplier will be able to help.
The fact that comfort, flexibility, strength, stability, style and design are all important, may sound blindingly
obvious, but there is more to this than meets the eye. Today there is an enormous choice of educational furniture
from suppliers and their catalogues and online stores and there are a number of key considerations you should take
into account.
Tables and chairs should meet the needs of student's height, so 'one size fits all' is no longer the adage here. The
chair seat and table height relationship is important and the new European Standard EN 1729 standard provides
essential dimensions for children's wellbeing and specifically their backs. Height and tilt adjustable furniture is
more expensive, but can provide flexibility in the classroom, according to need. The standard recommends either
a range of fixed chair and desk heights or variable height furniture that can be adjusted quickly and easily. The
problem with fixed height furniture is ensuring a match with the user as they circulate around a building or room.
Therefore, purchasers of school furniture should consult the new standard before making a decision.
New European Standards for Classroom furniture were introduced during 2007.This new standard is referenced
EN 1729 Parts 1 and 2. This refers to a new standard specifically for tables, desks and chairs for use in UK schools
1933 to 2008
and is the only current and valid standard for classroom furniture. The new standard is split into two parts: Part
1 for size and dimensions of products - checks functional dimensions and ensures correct seating posture for
children's back care. Part 2 for strength and stability - checks product safety in use and ensures products will
stand up to classroom demands. Any product must pass both parts to fully comply with EN 1729.
Some manufacturers of Classroom chairs have EN 1729 Part 1 Certification - or are stating that their chairs are
EN 1729 compatible. This is fine, because Part 1 refers to new size dimensions, angles and comfort controls of
Classroom seating to ensure that our children are sitting on chairs which offer correct posture. However, the most
important aspect of EN 1729 is Part 2, the strength and stability of the chairs and we all need to know that the
chairs we buy are structurally sound - making sure they can stand up to the rigours of school use.
Importantly, there are new chair seat and table height ratios. The standard now specifies 6 different sizes (heights)
and allows manufacturers to make products at heights +/- 10mm to those shown. The following table should be
used as your guide to EN 1729 standards.
New EN 1729 Classroom Furniture Information
| Age Guide |
Size Mark |
Foot Colour Code |
Chair Seat Height |
Table Height |
| 3-4 years |
1 |
Orange |
260mm |
460mm |
| 4-6 years |
2 |
Violet |
310mm |
530mm |
| 6-8 years |
3 |
Yellow |
350mm |
590mm |
| 8-11 years |
4 |
Red |
380mm |
640mm |
| 11-14 years |
5 |
Green |
430mm |
710mm |
| 14+ |
6 |
Blue |
460mm |
760mm |
With Government statistics showing that an average of 3 pupils per class are suffering from back problems, it is no
surprise that many Local Authorities are already starting to specify this new standard for Classroom chairs. With
the health of our children of paramount importance no-one wants to be accused of neglecting their future mobility
and well being.
Be very careful when you order new products as the new table and chair sizes are typically 10-20mm different to
the old BS sizes and their heights will probably not match up with existing furniture in your classrooms. Old and
new chairs may not stack together, existing chairs and tables have colour coded feet - do not rely on these colours
for ordering new furniture. EN1729 has changed some of these colours from those in the previous BS standard.
Whilst many of you may not know the full details and implications of EN1729, and indeed it is not yet a
compulsory standard (advisory only) you can rest assured that your best interests are being addressed by
Morleys. We, like you, have a duty of care to provide Classroom furniture which meets these standards and we are
introducing new product ranges and updating existing ranges to meet with these requirements. We hope that our
lead will encourage others within the industry also and we strongly believe it should be on the checklist when you
consider Classroom furniture in the near future.