The Importance of Methodology Evaluation of School Furniture for Czech Children with Mobility Disability in Relation to Children’s Anthropometry

The paper presents results of research conducted under the support of the IGA LDF MENDELU project, id. No. 32/2010 (Anthropometry in Disabled Children in Relation to Furniture) and the NIS MPO ČR FR-TI1/050 project (Information System for the Support of Research, Development, Innovation and Furniture Quality). It gives an account of theoretical and methodological foundations, introduces the project’s research objectives. Its major objective is to familiarise professional public with the results of the conducted research the focus of which was to determine requirements for furniture designated for children with mobility restrictions. The defined requirements then constitute the grounds of school furniture assessment methodology. These requirements are divided into three levels that are somehow interconnected. Application of the methodology as a whole is highly wide and can be directed at all educational institutions in the Czech Republic with the pupils from the target group. The evaluation outcome is a report of each evaluated product. The questions raised also belong to a broader context of the issue at hand, related to the project of protection and safety standards establishment in relation to health status of children and youth, in the context of the “Long-term programme of the improvement of health status of the Czech Republic population – Health for everybody in the 21st century” paper, objective 4: HEALTH OF YOUTH – TO BUILD CONDITIONS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE TO BECOME HEALTHIER AND APTER TO FULFILL THEIR ROLE IN THE SOCIETY BY 2020. It is recommended to make a proper definition of the dimensional characteristics of children and update their measurements for furniture design in the Czech Republic constantly (including revision of technical regulations and innovation dimensions in the literature). This can be considered as an opportunity to improve the health of future generations.