Indoor Play Centre Flooring in Finchley, North London

Brief

A children’s indoor play centre in North London called us in when the flooring throughout the venue needed updating. It’s a tougher brief than it sounds. Large numbers of children moving fast between soft play areas, a busy entranceway taking constant footfall, and an owner who wanted the finish to feel modern rather than tired.

Our estimator visited the venue to measure up, see how each area actually gets used day to day, and get a feel for the look the owner had in mind before suggesting anything.

Our Process

After talking through the brief, the owner came to our office to work through our sample library in person, we chose the following:

• Forbo Allura Flex 1mm in white wash elegant oak, for a hygienic, easy-to-clean surface across the main play areas
• Gradus Latour 2 carpet tiles in wansdyke, for a softer feel underfoot around the soft play zone
• Coral Classic entrance matting in raven, to trap dirt and moisture before it reached the main flooring

The Forbo Allura Flex and the Gradus carpet tiles are a similar height, so the join between the two sits flush rather than as a step. That’s one less trip hazard in a venue full of children running between zones.

Forbo Allura Flex 1mm has a 5mm total thickness including a 1mm wear layer. On a job this size it’s laid on tackifier rather than fully adhered, which keeps the fit flexible and cuts down on adhesive use. Gradus Latour 2 is a solution dyed nylon carpet tile with a 5.5mm total thickness, a tufted loop pile construction, and 75% recycled content. Coral Classic is a 9mm entrance mat built for maximum moisture absorption and dirt scraping, rated for the heaviest commercial use.

We started by uplifting the old multi coloured carpet tiles that had been down throughout the venue. The products chosen for this job meant the subfloor only needed patch repairing rather than a full re-screed, so once that was done the new flooring went straight in.