What Are the Benefits of Air Conditioning in Schools?

School air conditioning helps keep classrooms at a comfortable temperature, particularly during the warmer spells that are becoming more common in the UK. Combined with effective ventilation, it also helps keep fresh air moving through classrooms and creates a more comfortable environment for pupils and staff.
This makes classrooms much easier to teach especially during the hottest weeks of the year.

At Chillaire, we install and maintain school air conditioning systems from leading brands, such as Daikin, Mitsubishi Electric, Fujitsu, Panasonic, LG, Toshiba, Samsung and many more.

We will look at how air conditioning can improve classroom comfort.

Keeping Classrooms at a Comfortable Temperature

Children need cooler rooms than adults to work at their best, and hot classrooms leave pupils tired, restless and slower to finish tasks. Classroom air conditioning holds the temperature steady, even when 30 pupils, a set of laptops and a sunny window are heating the room at once.

A real school example: Chillaire installed a Toshiba air source heat pump air conditioning system in a new school classroom. The system was selected to provide an even airflow across the room while keeping the classroom comfortable for pupils. Combined with a Daikin VAM heat recovery ventilation air handler.

Creating Better Conditions for Exams and Assessments

GCSE and A level exams take place in May and June, when halls and classrooms are often at their hottest. Pupils sitting a paper in a hot room are at a disadvantage. Cooling the spaces used most for assessments, such as the main hall and ICT suites, gives all pupils the same fair conditions.

Improving Classroom Air Quality

Air conditioning units filter the air that passes through them, which helps reduce dust and pollen. That is useful for pupils with hay fever during the summer term. Most split units recirculate the air already in the room, so they do not bring in fresh air. That is why the best schemes pair cooling with mechanical ventilation.

Why Are School Ventilation Systems Important Too?

Full classrooms build up carbon dioxide (CO2) quickly, and the stale air can have an affect on concentration.

Heat recovery ventilation solves this without wasting heat. It brings in fresh outdoor air and passes the warmth from the outgoing air to the incoming air, so winter classrooms do not turn cold.

A real school example: Chillaire installed a Daikin system like this in a new school classroom, which you can read about in our case study. A CO2 sensor adjusts the ventilation according to the conditions in the room, while heat recovery helps reduce energy loss.

Can One System Heat and Cool a Classroom?

Yes. Many modern systems are heat pumps, so the same unit cools in summer and heats in winter. Inverter-driven models adjust their output to the room instead of switching on and off, which keeps running costs lower than older fixed-speed units.

Choosing the Right Air Conditioning System for Your School

The right air conditioning system depends on the size and layout of the school, how each room is used and whether you need heating, cooling or ventilation. There are also different air conditioning systems to consider, so it is worth looking at the options before deciding what will work best for your building.

For more guidance, read our guide to choosing air conditioning for schools.

Planning and Managing Your School Air Conditioning System

To begin planning your school’s air conditioning system, start with the rooms that need the most attention, including:

-Top-floor and south-facing classrooms

-Exam halls and ICT suites

-Rooms used by pupils with additional needs

-Server and comms rooms, where equipment needs cooling to stay reliable

Chillaire can carry out a free site survey to assess each space, looking at factors such as cooling requirements, ventilation, power supply, unit position and noise levels. Our air conditioning design and consultancy services can then help develop a system around the building and how it is used.

For schools and academy trusts with several sites, we can also help develop a consistent approach across buildings. Installation can be planned around term dates and school holidays to keep disruption to a minimum.

Once the system is installed, we offer planned preventative maintenance contracts with various levels of cover available. Our contract customers have access to 24-hour service and repairs if a system develops a fault.

School Air Conditioning From Chillaire

Chillaire has been designing, supplying, installing and maintaining air conditioning, heating and ventilation systems since 1992 across the Midlands and nationally. We have experience working across education settings, from individual classrooms to larger multi-room systems, using equipment from leading manufacturers.

From site surveys and system design through to installation, commissioning and planned maintenance, Chillaire can support your school throughout the life of the system. Free surveys and quotations are available for schools, colleges and universities.

Contact Chillaire to discuss air conditioning or ventilation for your school.