As with any building schools have strict requirements when it comes to lighting design, in 2013 the Education Funding Agency (EFA) published a number of guidelines to assist with lighting designs – The Facilities Output Specification, Baseline Design Lighting Strategy and the Day Light Design Guide.
The EFA lighting design standards comply with and are in line with the guidance from The Society of Light and Lighting (SLL) and the Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE)
It is essential to make sure that learning environments have good quality daylight and the idea of the day light design guide was produced to ensure schools have sufficient balanced glare-free light in all teaching spaces. The goal of good lighting design is to ensure that there is always ‘good lighting’ rather than just a formal exercise to provide enough illumination to allow building users to go about their tasks.
The EFA’s Priority School Building Programme output specification requires the use of Climate Based Daylight Modelling (CMDM) which gives the required numerical approach to support good lighting design and takes into account the quality and quantity of sunlight and daylight. This modelling is a fundamental part of architectural design and daylight designers must be consulted on massing, orientation and façade optimisation at the very early stages of the design.
Using Climate Based Daylight Modelling allows far greater detail when it comes to light distribution and the intensity which allows the building design to be adjusted to create the maximum use of sunlight and daylight. Further information about CBDM and the useful daylight index and daylight autonomy can be found here.
As you can imagine energy efficiency is high priority within schools and the use of any lighting proposal must take this into consideration. Energy efficiency should be maintained as it reduces the emission of carbon dioxide and, of course, reduces the cost of running each lighting installation, which is high priority for schools.
If you are considering a project for lighting design for a school, a handy guide to be aware of can be found here.
