A KEIGHLEY company has launched the UK’s first full range of antibacterial furniture for nursery schools.

British Thornton says the new Trudy products are coated with a special, child-friendly surface which helps prevent the spread of germs.

The range is designed to build on the success of the South Street manufacturer’s existing Trudy brand, introduced in 2008 and now boasting annual sales totalling about £3 million.

The latest product also features an innovative ‘nut and bolt’ linking mechanism, which enables nursery staff to easily alter the configuration of the modular system.

Children themselves put the furniture through its paces ahead of the final development stage.

A group of three and four-year-olds was appointed as official testers.

“This new range is a major expansion for our company,” said product design director, Jonathan Clark.

“Despite the popularity of the existing Trudy products in primary schools, we noticed that the furniture was not being incorporated into any nursery areas.

“After looking into this, we discovered that nurseries prized furniture made of solid, natural materials with extended warranties – perhaps due to the strain classes of toddlers can put on it!

“This furniture range has been designed to fit in with the everyday needs of nurseries.

“Also, nurseries require flexibility. Children at that age have rapid-fire imaginations and staff have to work hard to keep up with them – we wanted to give another tool to help them out.

“The nut and bolt linking device we pioneered for this range means it’s extremely easy for staff to quickly change the layout of a room – into a space station, a pirate ship or anything else that kids can imagine.”

The firm’s Trudy range has continued to grow in popularity over the past eight years. Around 66,000 units a year are now sold.

“It has long been a flagship offering for the company and we’re very proud of the excellent reception it has received from schools across the UK,” said chief executive officer, Gerard Toplass.

“We were very keen to expand our offering to include a suite of products specifically for nursery children and our design team has worked tirelessly to bring this to life.

“We’ve all been blown away by the result and can’t wait to see the furniture in nurseries up and down the country.”