News

From the launch of new products to appointment of new staff, latest installations, manufacturing news, case studies and testimonials, you'll find lots of information about what we do, how we do it and what people think of us.

Ashgate Croft is a large school on the outskirts of Chesterfield. The largest of 10 special schools in Derbyshire, the school offers a full range of opportunities for over 140 children and students with special needs aged 3 to 19 years.

The school approached Experia when it wanted to upgrade its existing pool, built in 1973, to new state of the art facilities. The main objective was to design a pool large enough to enable pupils of any age to be unrestricted, whilst also enabling the school to raise revenue by being able to hire out the facility to other groups.

The Experia team were asked to supply and install an ‘all singing, all dancing’ interactive sound and light system like no other. Top prioirities for the school were that it should add a new, fun dimension to pool as well as being fully interactive, with pupils able to control the environment from anywhere within the water. Teachers also needed to use the area for educational purposes.  As a result some detailed, creative design and planning was called for to ensure the room would meet – and exceed all expectations.

Experia’s Mike Anderton was the only man for the job!

Mike set about designing the area and decided to include an industry first - the IRiS Pool Director software recently developed by Experia. The groundbreaking software  features 50 (yes 50!) preset activities that allow light, sound, fog, vibration, aroma and video projection to be controlled in a predetermined manner to develop lifeskills.
Designed by and in conjunction with special needs professionals, some of the activities have been made to develop tracking skills, encourage movement, develop switching skills, theming, calming, alerting and encourage the pupils to have fun – all controlled by a special, watersafe touchscreen monitor.

The easy to use software also allows the user to create their own activities for every need and so offered fantastic scope for what the school wanted to achieve.

Next Mike looked at shedding some light on his plan. “Whilst I would have liked to use LED lighting, the sheer size of the room would have meant a very large number were needed and this would be both impractical and unnecessarily expensive.”

Instead Mike used a number of IRiS Light Changers and IRiS Shape Projectors to flood the pool with light and rotating colour shapes. IRiS Projectors and Mirror Balls were used to add to the ambience of the room while an IRiS scanner –producing eight different colours and shapes which move to music – was added as a brilliant way to develop tracking and basic recognition skills.

Due to the size and acoustics of the pool area, a high specification Bose sound system was also installed to ensure a clear crisp sound time after time.

Mike ensured his designs incorporated the IRiS wirefree switching system, to ensure no potentially dangerous cables or tubes are used in the area. This included a number of IRiS Floating Switches allowing the pupils to control the lighting, sound, and video, aroma from anywhere in the pool.

Mike worked closely with the architects, building contractors and electricians working on the pool renovation to ensure a smooth stress free solution was delivered. Despite its complex design, the installation of all the equipment was completed in only 2 days - well in advance of their handover date!

 “I have designed numerous pools across the country and not only is Ashgate Croft schools’ the most technologically advanced, but the one that delivers the most value and educational benefit to the school and its pupils” remarked Mike Anderton at the official opening ceremony in September.

We wish Ashgate Croft School the very best and hope the pupils will thoroughly enjoy their fantastic new pool facility.

If you have a Swimming Pool, Hydrotherapy Pool, Spa Room or Bathroom you feel it needs a little sparkle then please contact us on 0845 644 0977 or email click here.

When deputy headteacher Andy Sloan set out to find suitable new sensory equipment for Rosehill School in Nottingham, Experia quickly stood out from rivals due to the breadth of its service.

“Experia matched the school’s requirements perfectly,” he recalls. “While other companies could do this and that, Experia seemed to be able to do it all.”

Rosehill School in Nottingham is a day school for children aged 4 to 19 years with different forms of autism and related learning difficulties. It has more than 90 pupils. Sensory equipment can be tremendously beneficial to autistic children, who typically place greater emphasis on their senses during the learning process.

It is one of only 30 UK schools to hold the ‘creative schools’ award from Creative Partnerships, the Government's flagship creative learning programme.

His attention was quickly caught by Experia’s MILE package. The Multisensory Interactive Learning Environment (MILE) is an integrated sensory package, designed to provide an intensive, full body experience with an emphasis on learning and development. Operating entirely without wires, the MILE makes use to wind, sound, light, aroma, vibration and video to create complete sensory scenarios which fit any subject.

“Our children don’t learn in the  traditional way, our children learn through their senses,” explains Andy. “The MILE provides a great opportunity for our children to learn through that sensory experience. It supports a host of skills development opportunities, from cause and effect, colour, number and shape recognition to gross and fine motor skills.”

MILE scenarios created by Andy and his colleagues for their pupils have ranged from winter to World War II.

“We already had a sensory area,” explains Andy, “so we weren’t looking for more of the same. We required an interactive learning environment with a sensory aspect. Entertainment was important too and, for those pupils who can’t readily go to the cinema, the school can provide the ‘surround sound’ cinema experience.”

Andy was also attracted by the MILE’s modular nature. Made from a mix and match assembly of equipment, it can easily be updated, improved and adapted over time, making it effectively future-proof.

The MILE is easily portable. “We can easily take it with us should we ever decide to move,” reports Andy, “and that’s a distinct possibility. Not only that, but MILE and our relationship with Experia provide opportunities to network with other schools. Many teachers and pupils from other establishments – including mainstream ones – have visited and I have taken parts of the MILE to show and demonstrate elsewhere.”

The MILE has had a very positive influence on Rosehill pupils. OSTED inspectors have noted an improvement in communication skills and some parents are considering installing similar equipment at home.

“They’ve seen what an effect it’s had on their children,” says Andy. “The MILE has been a great investment for us!”

If you think your pupils or users would benefit from using a MiLE click here or telephone 0845 644 0977.

A special needs school in Surrey has become one of the first schools in the UK to install a new, state of the art sensory learning system which uses sophisticated digital technology to bring about fantastic learning opportunities for children with special needs.

Ridgeway School in Farnham, Surrey has just completed a major, £30,000 project to install a Multi-Sensory Interactive Learning Experience  (or ‘MILE’) to help open up new educational and development opportunities for the school’s 100 pupils with severe and  profound multiple learning difficulties. 

Developed by Experia – one of the UK’s leading specialists in sensory learning equipment and education – the MILE system is the result of a two-year development programme that uses the latest digital technology to create complete learning environments that stimulate every sense, thereby offering new development opportunities for all pupils, regardless of ability.

The new MILE room at The Ridgeway Community School incorporates everything from moving sound, air and light to vibration and video to create exciting scenarios to fit any subject or educational need. This means children with sensory impairments don’t miss out on learning opportunities because their other senses compensate. 

Everything is controlled centrally by a computer-based system that synchronises with lessons to take pupils on a journey, enabling them to experience first hand the subjects they are taught.

 Head teacher of The Ridgeway Community School Darryl Morgan explains: “Ridgeway has always been progressive in terms of using technology to drive forward the learning boundaries and opportunities for our pupils. We have used sensory equipment in the past but this tended to be used for one to one relaxation purposes. Our motto is ‘a voice for all’ and what the MILE system offers us is a much more interactive environment that can incorporate entire classes of children. It makes learning meaningful, relevant and fun. When you walk into the room it’s effectively a blank canvas for any teacher – or pupil – to do what they want with.”

For example pupils are studying ‘The Owl who was Afraid of the Dark’, and then the space can be s darkened with stars shining down. At key times pupils cause the projectors to start, showing woodland scenes or owls flying along the walls.  The scent of damp earth and grass fills the space and the sound board emits the hoot of owls as well as repeated phases from the text. Teachers also provide feathers, leaves etc for pupils to feel. In this way every child accesses the story in a way that is meaningful to them and it has shown real results when teaching groups of mixed ability and need.

For special needs users the system holds groundbreaking new opportunities, supporting a host of skills development opportunities from cause and effect, colour, number and shape recognition to gross and fine motor skills. A third of Ridgeway’s pupils are on the autistic spectrum and the environment is particularly effective for teaching these children.

Darryl explains: ”We can either tailor the MILE room to only use the sensory stimulants they respond best to, or use it to gradually build up their tolerance to different sensory inputs.”

Since its installation the MILE system has already been integrated into the schools’ ‘learning platform’ – an online forum where teachers share and store ideas and lesson plans with other members of the school.

Gareth Jones, Managing Director of Experia, who has 13-years experience developing systems for the special needs and education sector explains: ‘The MILE system is the result of a £100,000, two year development programme and has been developed in conjunction with education professionals to provide the ultimate in exciting sensory learning for both mainstream and special needs pupils. We’re incredibly proud of what this system can help pupils achieve – particularly those with more profound special needs – and so it’s fantastic to see how both the teachers and pupils of Ridgeway have embraced both the learning and fun potential of the system.

“It’s also the only system of its kind developed with both teachers and carers in mind which means we have not only concentrated on making it easy to use, but easy to fit within and enhance existing lesson plans, and Microsoft Powerpoint and Opus presentations.”

But it’s not all work work at Ridgeway – the new system has also been used to raise ‘MILES of smiles’ at the school. Ridgeway pupils are currently preparing for an ICT  week and the MILE room is forming a core part of the event, with both secondary and primary pupils holding interactive performances of The Magic Flute and The Rainbow Fish. Darryl Morgan adds; ‘We work to the principle that learning should be stimulating AND fun and the MILE room achieves this. We have even integrated a Nintendo Wii into the room for play times – which has proved very popular with staff and students. It really is a fantastic resource for all.”


For further information on the MILE call us on 0845 644 0977 or click here.

In December 2007 Julie Rogers, Senior Practitioner at Prescot Drive – a children’s residential home in Liverpool - approached a number of companies wanting a new and exciting solution for an old, unused and unloved sensory room.

Julie had a tight deadline to complete her project and chose Experia because of the team’s quick and professional response to her enquiry.

Over a coffee, Gareth Jones met with Julie to discuss her requirements for the new room. “When I visited the original sensory room at Prescot Drive it was plain that at one time it had been well used but more recently had been ignored by teachers and children”, comments Gareth. “Although it was good it its day, it was now well past its sell by date and no longer offered a fun and interesting environment for children.”

Prior to meeting Gareth, Julie was considering a complete MILE environment for the room (Experia’s groundbreaking ‘Multisensory Interactive Learning Environment’) – but when Gareth investigated the size of the room and the needs of pupils, his recommendation was to opt for a much more effective – and cheaper! - solution. “The school essentially wanted a chill out and relaxation space for pupils, and therefore the educational features that have driven the technology behind the MILE system would have been unused. I knew from experience we could achieve a fantastic and appealing environment for the children at a lower cost than the MILE.”

Gareth set about designing a new room for the home working to Julies brief. Colourful soft play features were built into the room’s floor and ceiling including padded patchwork areas. A fibre optic ceiling was installed powered by experia’s silent  IRiS LED Lightsource to give the effect of twinkling stars. Experia’s bubble tube – a favourite of the school’s children – was then used to bathe the room in hues of calming colour. Easy to use, Experia’s LED bubble tube is the brightest on the market with no lamps to change.  Eight intensively bright, rich colours stimulate, whilst the unit scrolls between hundreds of shades of colour to aid relaxation.
 
Last but not least the walls were also painted in calming variations of dark and light blue to complete the effect.

Julie Rogers comments, “The Experia room has done just what we wanted – it has breathed exciting new life into what was an unloved facility and has created a fantastic relaxation space for the children at a much lower cost than we had originally anticipated.”

If you would like Experia to create your new sensory area please call us on 0845 644 0977 or click here.

Once again we are out and about at exhibtions throughout the country.

Click here to see a list of venues where we may be near you

Here you’ll find the latest information about what’s going on at Experia.

From the launch of new products to the appointment of new staff, details about our latest installations to how we manufacture products, you’ll find lots of information about what we do and how we do it.

To get the latest product information and offers sent direct to your inbox, sign up to our monthly e-bulletin by clicking here.

Please click on the relevant file to open. You may need Adobe Acrobat to view these files. If you do not have Acrobat installed on your PC click here for your free copy.

We are delighted to announce the launch of Experia Training Services.

As well as designing, manufacturing and developing a unique range of sensory equipment that is both fun to use and accessible to everyone, we are now able to offer knowledgeable and professional training on how to use sensory rooms and equipment to its full potential.

We can also offer training on other multi-sensory topics and bespoke training to meet your specific needs.
Below are highlights of some of our training package features:

Package 1:

• The basics of multi-sensory - a great package to get you back
to the basics of why you have a multi-sensory environment
• What is multi-sensory?
• Why use multi-sensory experiences in the educational
environment?

Package 2:

• Stepping stones to a sensory environment - if you are thinking about getting a sensory room, this is the course for you!
• Assessing the need for a multi-sensory room
• How to design a multi-sensory room
(including what equipment may be needed)

Package 3:

• Leap into your senses - teaching in a multi-sensory environment!
• Multi-sensory rooms: interact and learn how to use in the educational environment
• Practical multi-sensory resources/equipment in the educational
environment

Package 4:

• Bespoke training
• If you already have a sensory room and/or equipment and would like a re-fresher session on how to use or more specific training using our products please contact us and we can discuss with you what your training needs are and how we can help.

Package 5:

• Sensory MOT – time for a ‘spring’ clean?
• Is the equipment in your sensory room still appropriate
for your users?
• Does your sensory room and/or equipment need a
‘spring’ clean or repairs?
• We can help with the above. We can visit your multi-sensory room and based on its users and what the room is used for we can assess and advise whether your room and/or equipment continues to meet their needs. We can also advise on new products that may enhance the way the room is used for the users. Please contact us for further information.

Package 6:

• Mil e mileage – Experia’s multi-sensory interactive learning
environment
• Using the mile for immersive teaching
• Get ideas on what to create in your mile
• Lesson planning and scenario planning
• Collecting media for your scenarios
• Sharing scenarios

All training is provided by our Occupational Therapist, Jessica Brown.

Jessicas Bio

Jessica Brown is an American paediatric occupational therapist who has worked both in the United States and United Kingdom.
She has many years of sensory experience working with children within mainstream and special schools, as well as hospitals and private clinics. Jessica has recently joined the Experia team to
further help develop the therapeutic purpose and value of sensory products and to provide knowledgeable and professional training to users of sensory rooms and equipment.

If you are interested in Experia Training Services please contact us on 0845 644 0977 or
click here.

What do you get if you cross the worlds brightest LED, Experia and fibre optics?

Did you guess? No, ok, it’s the brand new Experia LED Fibre Optic Light source!

We’re pleased to introduce this wonderful new product. Suitable for any fibre optics, sideglow, ceiling, carpet or wide bore, this unit utilises the very latest in LED technology to produce a light source that emits the brightest exciting colours possible.

And because its LED driven you never have to change a lamp - the LED lasts around 50,000 hours. So if you had the product on 8 hours a day, 5 days a week that would be usage of 40 hours per week meaning 2080 hours a year. This means the product should last you just over 24 years!

The beautiful vibrant colours slowly change to create a wonderful calming environment. It has a small button on the back of the unit which when pressed stops the colours scrolling. This feature is ideal for theming and storytelling - imagine talking about being under the sea with blue colour filling the room, then being on a warm beach and stopping the colour on yellow.

The unit is also completely silent, no fan, no colour wheel and so won’t distract a user.
Because it’s low voltage, it doesn’t get hot so can be placed under a bubble tube plinth or at low level.

Available on its own, within a Soft Plinth with Fibre Optic Sideglow or as an IRiS Interactive Version. On its own price £348.00 + delivery of £15.00 + VAT.

To order yours click on ‘products’ then ‘fibre optics’ or call 0845 644 0977.

Experia are pleased to announce that in 2010 we are on tour with our brand new Sensory Awareness Days.

Each day will show you how to maximise the use of your sensory equipment and display some of fantastic new products available from Experia. Special products offers will also be available on the day.

To be held across the UK in Aberdeen, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Manchester, Leeds, Nottingham, Birmingham, Bristol, Milton Keynes, Norwich, Bristol, Plymouth, London and Portsmouth.

The tour gets started on Monday January 18th in London, to book your free tickets click here.

Whilst our products may be the best available, our people are also the best ensuring first class customer support

Have a browse through previous editions of our newsletters

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