Dulwich College is a leading independent boarding and day school for boys aged 2–18. Founded in 1619 by Edward Alleyn, the college was established to educate and provide lodgings for 12 scholars and today continues that tradition, with pupils joining from across the UK and around the world.
The college’s Orchard boarding house, alongside the adjacent Old Blew house, provides accommodation for 60 pupils, including both weekly and full boarders.
When the college began looking to refresh The Orchard, Witley Jones worked closely with the maintenance team and House Master to deliver a phased renovation programme across three holiday periods: Easter, summer and October half-term. This approach allowed the work to be carefully planned around the rhythm of school life, minimising disruption while creating a lasting improvement for pupils.
The challenge
The existing rooms had served the college well over many years, but the furniture was beginning to feel dated and no longer reflected the high-quality environment the College wanted to provide for its pupils.
A key challenge was the variety of room sizes and layouts throughout The Orchard. The solution needed to work across different spaces while ensuring every boarder had a comfortable, practical environment that felt like home.
The college’s main goals were to maximise storage, improve the overall experience for boarders and create rooms that balanced functionality with a warm, welcoming feel.
The solution
Working collaboratively with the college, Witley Jones designed and manufactured furniture that made the most of every available space.
A major focus was on improving functionality without compromising comfort. Each bed space, whether a bunk or low bed, was designed with an integrated box headboard, incorporating electrical points, an LED reading light and a double socket with USB-A and USB-C charging outlets.
By combining these features into the headboard, the need for traditional bedside tables was eliminated, creating more usable floor space and increasing storage capacity in each room.
The furniture design also considered the wider aesthetic of the refurbishment. Witley Jones worked closely with the maintenance and boarding teams to understand how they wanted the renewed spaces to look and feel. Together, they developed a mood board and selected finishes that complemented the wider renovation.
Built for long-term use
In a boarding environment, furniture needs to be more than visually appealing, it must withstand the demands of daily life.
Witley Jones worked with the College to develop a solution that could serve as a template for future boarding house refurbishments. The bunk designs, manufacturing methods and materials used have been rigorously tested and certified by the Furniture Industry Research Association (FIRA), providing confidence in their durability, safety and suitability for long-term use.
Alongside this, Witley Jones’ ten-year fair wear and tear guarantee gave the college reassurance that the furniture was designed to perform for years to come.
A partnership approach
Witley Jones engaged with the college early in the process, which was essential to meeting the project’s tight holiday-period deadlines.
By manufacturing the furniture for the full project upfront, the college was able to protect against potential future price increases and reduce the risk of supply chain delays. Witley Jones also stored all completed furniture free of charge, with items protected under a vesting certificate, giving the college confidence that everything would be ready when needed.
The result is a refreshed boarding environment that combines practicality, durability and comfort, helping pupils feel settled and supported throughout their time at Dulwich College.
A partnership built to last
The refurbishment of The Orchard has created a boarding environment that better reflects the experience Dulwich College wants to provide for its pupils, combining comfort, practicality and durability within every room.
Through close collaboration with the college team, Witley Jones delivered a solution that worked around the realities of a busy boarding school environment, from varied room layouts and tight holiday installation periods through to the long-term demands of daily use.
The result is a refreshed space where pupils have improved storage, integrated technology and a more comfortable place to call home during their time at the college.
For schools and colleges looking to enhance their boarding accommodation, Witley Jones works closely with teams from the earliest stages of design through to manufacture and installation, creating furniture solutions tailored to the needs of students and staff alike.