Albert Pritchard Infant School Case Study
- Product:
- Coniston Wall Mounted Canopy
Albert Pritchard Infant School, Merseyside
Product Installed: The Coniston Wall Mounted Canopy with Rear Brackets and Front Goalposts
Canopy Size: 4.2m x 4.5m
Frame Colour: Gentian Blue, RAL 5010
Installation Date: August 2024
Installation Duration: Two days
Intended Use: Entrance Canopy & Parent Waiting Area
The Brief
In July 2021, we supplied and installed a 23m x 5m Coniston Wall Mounted canopy at Albert Pritchard Infant School in Wednesbury, West Midlands. The canopy provides shade and shelter along a length of their classrooms, creating continuous weather protection from the inside to the outside
Three years later in 2024, we were pleased to hear from the school’s Facilities Manager again, who explained that they were looking to have a school canopy installed over the entrance to their office.
Having installed at the school before, we discussed providing a quote for a Coniston Wall Mounted Canopy to match the one we installed in 2021. However, this was a complex area; the left side featured a wheelchair ramp, and the right side featured an external stairwell into a basement boiler room. This meant that the placement of posts would be tricky, alongside the discovery of a waterpipe trench under the ground where the canopy posts would have been installed.
It was also discovered at the site survey, that we couldn’t fit the canopy to the wall as we usually would, due to the placement of the windows and the stairwell. We had to avoid blocking any windows in the area with posts as they needed to be able to use all windows when required.
The Solution
After discussions at Able Canopies HQ, we were able to find a solution to each obstacle, whilst still offering the preferred canopy of choice – the Coniston Canopy.
To overcome the issues with the posts at the front of the canopy, we used a bracket to fix the front right side of the canopy to the wall over the stairwell, and a goalpost instead of a regular canopy post next to the ramp. Using a goalpost instead of a regular post meant that we could have a wider space between the post and bracket, and it provides more than enough support so that the left side of the canopy could be cantilevered over the ramp.
These solutions ensured both the ramp and stairwell, and windows were not obstructed, and we also safely avoided the underground waterpipe.
To overcome the fact that we couldn’t mount the canopy to the wall at the rear as we usually would, we designed another two brackets that could be fixed to the side walls and overhang the canopy at the rear to block rainfall.
The Installation
The installation was carried out on time over two days as planned during the school’s summer holidays. This meant that upon the start of the new school year, parents, pupils and teachers could make use of their new covered entrance which also doubles as awaiting area for parents when collecting their children in the rain.
The staff at the school were pleased with the new canopy which was powder coated in Gentian Blue (RAL 5010) to match the canopy we installed in 2021, and the school branding colours, including the railings and gate underneath the canopy, ensuring it fitted in perfectly.
When asked what she thought of the product and service provided, the Schools’ Facilities Manager said:
“Phil (from the installation team) was very professional, adhered all health and safety procedures. He was very polite and extremely tidy. I was happy with the finished product and pleased from the telephone call, visit, survey and email conversations, then the final product, amazing transformation.”
