Believe it or not 2026 school year is nearly over.
Today’s blog focuses on getting the classroom and the school ready for the first day of school in 2027.
The best time to think about next year’s classroom is now, it’s an opportunity to think about what does and doesn’t work in your existing space and make a plan. Often we see educators put off ordering their new furniture until December when term 4 wraps up and miss the deadline to guarantee delivery in January.
EOF is an approved NSW Department of Education Supplier on Contract 771 and we know firsthand the importance of putting in the work now to ensure the first day run smoothly. Creating a space to encourage students to settle into, feel welcomed into and engage from day 1 is the aim.
When it comes to planning EOF offers the full range of services. First up we will visit to your site. Your designated EOF Sales Consultant will come to your school measure the space and listen to your brief. Communication is key at this stage, understanding your brief and your school and identifying your ‘must haves’. We will flag any potential road blocks and create a plan to avoid them. One of the best advice we can offer is to designate a project leader, like a school captain, to be a designated point of contact. It’s a massive job to refit a classroom, or a library, or a school hall so the best approach is to have one point of contact to help meet project milestones. Every project will also have a main contact from EOF.
After the initial brief we can provide detailed floor plans and 3-D renders so you can visualise what your space will look like. Every project is different and with our range of 1000s of products and reliable, trusted suppliers we will give options for every product and provide samples if needed. At our showroom in Newcastle we have a designated Education space so you can test drive the products firsthand, come and sit on the chairs and make sure it’s exactly what you want. Design options are unlimited, we manufacture Australian made furniture and can customise the size, shape, colour to meet you brief.
It can be a numbers game when starting the project, simple questions all add up to help create the space.
How many students are you trying to fit in the space?
What’s the space that you have to work with?
Can you fit what you need in the space?
What is the budget? What can you get for that amount?
Students don’t go easy on furniture. We all know that school furniture has to be durable and flexible. Easy to move but solid enough to tip over, it’s a balancing act! Safety is important and EOF will advise of all guidelines when designing the space. Furniture tipping regulations, recommendations for rounded corners on desks are good examples of how we will ensure the space ticks every box.
Every school day looks different, mess is often inevitable. Some days students will paint, some days they will be glue, and most days the furniture will be the canvas. Easy to clean surfaces will be recommended, we can use writable surfaces on request. The furniture needs to be able to allow kids to be creative, especially in the primary years, with the assurance at the end of the school day it will return to it’s clean state.
School needs to be accessible and inclusive. We can to provide furniture options that are inclusive and can be adapted to suit all students needs. Active learning spaces are more popular than ever, as are spaces that encourage play based learning. Wobble stools, floor cushions, east to use height adjustable tables are all designed to encourage active learning and allow students to move and engage
Classroom aesthetics have shifted from tradition primary colours – red, blue and yellow – and have been replaced with natural, muted tones. Natural wood textures, soft tones are now preferred to create a calmer space. EOF can work in any commercial melamine colour, there are endless options. Our Academy furniture is built primarily with Laminex and Polytec Australian made melamine. This use of colour can extend to seating options, tote trays, soft furnishings – everything that makes up a modern classroom.
Sustainability is important at EOF and we have many measures in place to achieve our target in regards to sustainability. EOF’s roots are in reconditioned furniture, formerly known as Experienced Office Furniture we have a longstanding dedication to minimising waste and always work towards a better future. Work Life Furniture is a division of EOF that continues this legacy, it’s purpose is to provide new life to excess commercial furniture. Work Life Furniture manages all stages of a product’s life: raw material extraction, materials processing, manufacture, distribution, use, repair and maintenance, disposal or recycling.
Every decision we make as a company takes our environment into consideration. You’ll notice when our EOF team delivers your furniture it’s not wrapped in plastic or cardboard where possible. We use reusable recycled padding in our trucks to minimise waste yet still ensure the furniture is protected and delivered in pristine condition. We partner with re-Direct recycling and Hunter Recycling to maintain the best possible environmental outcomes. Our manufacturing machines are configured to minimise waste age, in simple ways we make a thoughtful difference.
EOF endeavor to always put the community first, the opportunity to provide furniture to NSW schools isn’t one we take lightly. We will go above and beyond to make sure every fit out exceeds expectations, and with our 50+ staff we proudly can provide every skill needed to redesign your classroom, your library, your administration workspace and beyond.
Why chose EOF? EOF handles every stage of the process, we are a one stop shop. From the initial contact to discuss your brief right through to the installation it’s the same experienced team. Our 100% Australian made Academy Range products come with a 10 Year Warranty to ensure longevity and provide peace of mind when ordering, they are built to last. EOF’s factory is an ISO 9001 accredited site, so when you order from EOF you have confidence that your furniture is built meeting Australian standards of safety by a team that is respected and well looked after.
So, grab an early start on 2027 and contact our team today, fill out a contact form or give us a call on 02 4952 1555.
