Like moving a business, moving a school is often no easy task. You need to prepare well in advance for the move of furniture and teaching materials. Between the layout of classrooms, the library, the canteen, and all the equipment needed for school activities, you'll no doubt have quite a few problems to sort out and boxes to move. You'll need to be well organized to find your way around the new premises. Not to mention the fact that students will have to adapt and find their new bearings. How do you go about moving a school without upsetting the pupils? What are the common-sense rules to follow? Here are a few tips to make your school move a success.
The best time to move a school is during the school vacations. It's a privileged time when the premises are completely empty, with no students present. You'll have plenty of time to prepare the boxes and orchestrate the loading and unloading of the trucks. Summer vacations are obviously preferable to avoid disrupting the students and having to manage changes during the year.
Whether you're moving to a new building or joining a school group, an audit of your future school premises is essential. It will enable you to organize your new school layout as effectively as possible. Take a close look at the layout of the premises, so as to anticipate the best way to set up the different areas: classrooms, library, dining room, rest and activity rooms in nursery schools... And don't forget to think carefully about the circulation routes. To organize the movement of pupils within the school and help them find their bearings easily, you'll need to take great care with signage.
In addition to the audit of your new premises, it's also a good idea to draw up an inventory of the furniture, equipment and archives to be moved. You can then decide what to keep and what to get rid of. There's no point in moving furniture that's unsuitable or that you don't need.
Based on the list of furniture and equipment to be moved to the new premises, you can contact the movers and ask for quotes. To do this, you'll need to draw up a schedule of requirements specifying your needs and expectations: do you need help with packing? What are the dates for the move? How long will it take to complete the move?
Anticipate as much as possible to make sure you have the date slots you want. The summer period is generally a busy time for movers, due to transfers and the children's return to school. You can't afford to miss the start of the school year!
As a school principal or teacher, you'll also need to prepare your pupils for the change. Children sometimes find it hard to find their bearings in a new place. So you need to do everything you can to make sure they quickly feel at home in their new school.
With several months' advance notice, you can reassure children and parents alike by communicating about the new premises and the forthcoming move. This can take the form of posters on the school premises, or a newsletter sent out at the same time as the school newsletters, or meetings with parents and their representatives.
To get people in the right frame of mind, don't hesitate to hold an open day just before the start of the school year, so that everyone can get their bearings and be ready to get off to a good start on the first day.
Like moving a company, moving a school is a real challenge for the teaching staff, who will have to manage both the practical aspects and the psychological consequences of the move. To stack the odds in your favor, don't hesitate to entrust the logistical management of the move to a professional, so that you can devote yourself to the human dimension of the change of premises. Les Gentlemen du déménagement is at your disposal to draw up an estimate for your school move. Please do not hesitate to contact us.