AMV News

Well-designed, high-quality outdoor spaces within school, college, and university grounds hold equal significance to their indoor counterparts in enhancing the overall educational journey, fostering positivity, engagement, and fulfilment. But what are the key considerations when crafting outdoor spaces that optimise attractiveness, usability, safety, and sustainability?

Birthday celebrations for Artform Urban, a charity trek in the Peak District and the launch of a new HVM-compliant seat were just three of the highlights of a busy 2023 for the Bailey Street Furniture Group (BSFG).

Using canopies to provide shelter from the elements can transform outside spaces and enable a whole host of educational, play and social activities to take place all year round. Moving activities outside the confines of the classroom or indoor halls gives children an opportunity to learn and play in a healthy, stimulating environment.

Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt, 20 July 2023 - Tikehau Capital, the global alternative asset management group, announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake in CReators of the Outside WorlD (“CROWD”, or “the Company”), a panEuropean leading provider of cycling infrastructure and sustainable street furniture, based in the Netherlands, with a strong presence in the DACH Region, from Convent Capital, an investment company based in Amsterdam. 

The range of high quality sensory play equipment from AMV Playgrounds can help to unlock potential in children of all ages and abilities by enabling the creation of a stimulating, inclusive and attractive outdoor environment.

In an exciting collaboration, AMV Playgrounds has partnered with City In the Community (CITC) to bring a brand-new multi-use games area sports pitch to Scotland Hall Road Park, in Newton Heath. The project aims to enhance the community's access to sports facilities and promote an active and healthy lifestyle for residents of all ages and abilities.

On Friday 19th May the Bailey Street Furniture Group will be walking for Charity. Our chosen charity is Trees for Cities which aims to improve air quality and the lives of people living in cities across the country. Trees for Cities have already planted over 1.5 million trees. Our aim is to raise £1,500 for Trees for Cities which could plant 250 trees! 

The benefits of a Multi Use Games Area can be far-reaching for schools, colleges, universities and local authorities seeking to facilitate increased sporting activity. And choosing a MUGA from AMV, who have more than 35 years’ experience in providing facilities of this kind, means unlocking a host of additional benefits versus alternative suppliers that ensures return on investment is maximised.

The age-old expression ‘Buy cheap and you buy twice’ is so true and it applies to every sector. With the cost of living now off the scale, it can pay us all to be more money-savvy. At The Bailey Group, that’s our philosophy: delivering warranty-backed premium street furniture that lasts.

New year, new us! The Bailey Street Furniture Group is now trading as one limited company encompassing five of the outdoor furniture industry’s well-known brands – Bailey Streetscene, Artform Urban Furniture, Street Furniture Direct, AMV Playgrounds, and Cyclepods!

On behalf of all the team at AMV Playgrounds, we would like to take the opportunity to thank our clients, partners, and suppliers for your continued support throughout the year. 

Cycling or scootering to school is a great way to naturally build physical activity into your child’s everyday life. Teachers often state that children who don't do the morning school run in the car are more relaxed and ready to start the day feeling alert. Cycling and scooting has of course many benefits including fitness and mental wellbeing.

It’s autumn already! And as we all return to school for the beginning of the new academic year it is important to continue to encourage our children outdoors. A correctly designed outdoor environment offers many advantages for your children whilst in the school environment.

A couple of years ago, people talked about a return to the Roaring 20s of a century ago. A decade of financial prosperity, carefree spirits and mental well-being awaited. But, as we discovered, the world was reading a different script altogether. The pandemic, with its imposed self-isolation, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and all manner of domestic economic upheaval have squeezed our pips. So where does all this leave our children?

Being an innovative and young group of established companies, it has always been our vision since our foundation in 2014 to have a significant impact on the outside living environment.

Quality engineered multi use games areas (MUGAs) by AMV are ideal for creating contained outdoor sports and activity spaces that combine versatility with durability and longevity.

What is the one thing the residents of virtually every UK town and city have in common? Chances are most urban-dwellers will say their hometown is simply too congested and the traffic makes getting anywhere difficult and frustrating.

The devastating conflict in Ukraine and the sanctions placed on Russia by the rest of the world has inevitably led to supply uncertainty and escalating material costs. Following Covid and once the news of the invasion broke, steel prices jumped and have remained high. Both Russia and Ukraine are two of the world’s largest steel exporters.

The cost of living crisis is at the forefront of everyone’s minds. For those who may not be choosing between ‘heating and eating’ but do need to budget, giving up their expensive gym membership may be a necessity. So what’s the solution to maintaining a healthy life and purse?

The most popular fitness trend of 2021 was outdoor exercise with almost 60% of adults choosing the outdoors as their primary way to stay fit. 40% of gym members swapped the mirrors for the park and the home fitness market grew by almost 50%.

The recent pandemic has forced us to reinvent many aspects of our lives and despite the lack of recent guidelines from the government the reality of the situation has left us more cautious, still working from home and addressing previously ignored health issues. During this time of re-evaluation many new fitness trends have emerged.

With several national lockdowns firmly under our belts and despite offices being shut for most of 2020, the Department of Transport has noted a 38% increase in cycling since before the pandemic. Although this increase has been predominantly recreational the government is hoping that this can be the stimulus to continue this trend into long-term travel habits for us all.

Over the decades we have witnessed the evolution of street furniture, the look and design of each range responds to modern progression and the technology available at the time. Often the economy of the times is what shapes our street furniture. A continuous change in our urban environment is inevitable.

A giant leap forward towards realising our vision of circular, smart and innovative public spaces – CROWD proudly announces the acquisition of Bailey Street Furniture Group

As we begin the new year it is certainly not news that the UK faces a continued and significant threat from international terrorism. There have of course been well published attacks against protected sights across the globe however crowded places remain an easy target. Accessible and readily available crowded street scenes remain an attractive prospect for serious disruption to society and loss of life.

As powerful as nature. The Equilibria outdoor fitness collection allows you to embrace the energy of outdoor training and take your wellness lifestyle to the next level.

As university staff and students backed a three-day strike for lecturers in December, students were left concerned about further disruption to their education following 18 months of being off campus due to Covid.

Currently cars account for the majority of our transport emissions here in the UK and car reliance continues to rise, electric cars will of course have a huge impact on these figures but waiting for the change will take decades. Cycling is a change that can happen now.

To complement the Loop and Plateau products from our Danish partners outsider, a number of interactive and engaging play and fitness products have been added to our product range.

As both the world's leaders and media flocked to Glasgow for the historic and momentous COP 26, here at Bailey Street furniture Group, we were asking - what about the bikes? Did anyone even cycle to the summit? Where were the bicycle racks and stands?

Education experts and child psychologists have raised the alarm about the creeping “scolarisation of childhood”, as evidence grows that free play both at school and at home is being eroded in favour of academic, sporting and cultural activities.

The Plateau products combine steel frames with vibrant and durable HPL (High-Performance Laminate) to create a distinctive range of unified seating and picnic sets. This range can be elevated further with the addition of integrated tech and lighting.

Creative playground equipment is designed to encourage natural child-led play which is essential to development. A correctly designed environment offers numerous advantages that help child expansion in many ways.

AMV would like to introduce a collection of adaptable and multifunctional playground furniture that caters to all ages and key stages.

The closure of schools due to Covid has had a psychological impact on children. The crisis has highlighted many socio economic issues regarding home learning. The return to school has emphasised that not only does school fulfill an educational need but also the social and physical aspects of life for young people.

SunHub is an extension of Plateau Picnic, a range of furniture from AMV Playgrounds. The Plateau-series is built for longevity. From the factory, product lifetime is estimated for up to 50 years.

As we transition out of Covid living and hurtle toward Net Zero by 2050, it is inevitable that if we as a country want to make a positive impact on our future world and meet our ambitious environmental targets, then our towns and cities need to become smarter.

With the opportunity to resist returning to the standard classroom, many schools are redesigning their spaces to create safe and virus free learning environments. Many of these being outdoors. 

AMV Playgrounds offer many bespoke multi sensory play options that can be installed and designed for our precious outdoor spaces. The Trim Trail Range is manufactured in AMV’s workshop here in the UK.

The current pandemic is responsible for many things but surely one of the most destructive has to be the effect it has had on children’s play, their spaces and ultimately their all so important childhood freedom.

Within our modern environment many factors can affect our mental health, including of course our environment. Certain aspects of urbanisation and the loss of opportunity for experiencing nature on a regular basis for some people can affect levels of mental illness and health.

The Education Secretary Gavin Williamson promised a comprehensive track and trace would be in place by the start of the new school year. The draft documents, shared as part of the consultation, show that the main approach to safety will be that of the “protective bubble” raising questions about the practicalities of our traditional classrooms.

With the school system in disarray and September looming, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson sets out a transformative ten-year rebuilding programme for schools across England.

Covid has without doubt altered the way we work and where, we will no longer use the ‘office’ in the same way. Working remotely has taught us that we can. However we are unlikely to ever give up our working office environment completely. Isolation and connectivity issues make working from home less than ideal as a permanent solution.

Tackling Coronavirus is down to everyone following the guidelines, keeping their distance, washing their hands regularly, using their elbow to cough or sneeze into, using face masks etc. Every step has been established to protect ourselves and will help to protect our neighbours, colleagues, friends, and family members.

Getting ready for Back to School in September can be challenging for schools at the best of times. With Coronavirus on everyone's minds, we all know how important it is to follow government guidelines and make sure everywhere is as safe as possible. Schools have stayed open during lockdown, providing essential childcare for key workers. These children have formed isolated ‘bubbles’ to keep them safe whilst they learn and play.

With numerous weeks sheltering under the ‘Stay At Home’ umbrella and uncountable home classes, I find myself wondering whether my children will discover what many of us secretly question, is the traditional way of schooling really necessary for learning?. With the new normal beginning to take shape and a life that is expected to be different even after the virus’s impact lessens maybe so will the need for our classroom lessons!

When the inevitable happened and Covid-19 lockdown was not only announced but enforced on 23rd March 2020, our country changed. No longer was it considered safe to go to work, to travel, to use public transport. We saw the entire population begin to walk, the roads were clear and for the first time in decades towns, villages and cities saw the return of the bike!

Choosing the correct materials is vital when designing and specifying outdoor furniture for the future. In light of our current global climate emergency, the process has become more crucial than ever. It is paramount to select materials that balance aesthetics, durability and sustainability that the environment quite rightly demands to be considered.

In light of the current COVID-19 global pandemic, AMV Playground Solutions have been prompted to design and bring to market a new Sanitisation station to their portfolio of products. This is a design solution that simplifies personal cleanliness and hygienic waste disposal outside the safety of our own homes.

Our children are immersed and exposed to varying stressful environments, both at school and at home. It is of no surprise that we are reading negative headlines referring to the decline in our children’s mental health.

We would like to update you on the current position of our Group in relation to the COVID-19 Pandemic. The situation continues to develop on a daily basis and we as a Group have been monitoring this very closely, with the safety of all our colleagues being of paramount importance.

The last decade has seen a considerable shift in how urban spaces are designed and constructed across the world. Construction professionals have changed their practices from designing urban places around buildings and roadways, instead now focusing on public spaces and communities.

Amid the developing COVID-19 situation, we want to take the time to reassure you of the actions we are taking to keep our customers, employees and their families safe and healthy.

Street furniture is more important than ever in commercial environments and plays a much bigger role than simply aesthetic enhancements. It provides a multitude of functional and social benefits.

Around 72% of the EU population lives in urban areas (1). Cities and towns throughout Europe are evolving and growing at an incredible rate. As a result, a new and more developed model of sustainability is required. One which saves energy, protects the environment and increases citizens’ wellbeing.

As part of a continued growth strategy in 2020, we are excited to announce the launch of Bailey Street Furniture Group. This involves merging three urban street furniture brands, one playground equipment brand and all associated products into one core group umbrella.

AMV have successfully competed for a coveted place on a national framework agreement to manufacture, supply and install a variety of steel outdoor sports and active play equipment.

As part of the Bailey Specialist Business Group, AMV Playgrounds is involved with a group restructuring that will deliver greater efficiencies & improved lead times.

Vandal resistant Steel Tennis Nets have been installed by AMV Playgrounds in Lascelles Park for Slough MBC.

The children at the St Ignatius Catholic Primary School in Preston, have returned from their summer holidays to find a transformed playground.

The bespoke service offered by AMV Playgrounds is best demonstrated by the recent installation of target and traverse walls at Oare C of E Primary School, Marlborough in Wiltshire.