Perching Stools

A perching stool allows someone to 'semi sit' on its leading edge, offering support to the user without taking all their body weight, while keeping their feet flat on the floor.

Perching stools are usually significantly higher than regular kitchen chairs and have a tilted seat.

Perching stools have sitting surfaces which gently slope from front to back.

They are not designed to be sat on in a conventional way, but rather offer support to someone who is nearly standing up.

The user 'perches' on the low edge of the sloping seat.

Standing for food preparation at kitchen worktops may become difficult for people with reduced mobility.

This may be because they lack the strength, coordination or balance to stand for sustained periods of time.

A perching stool may provide just enough support to enable someone in this situation to undertake food preparation at the worktop.

It may also be useful for tasks at the kitchen sink.

Yes, most stools of this kind are easily adjustable via pin clips in each of the legs.

This allows them to be extended or retracted as desired, which in turn determines the stool's height.

The seats of perching stools are almost all adjustable in height, ranging from around 50cm to 70cm.

Yes, many stools of this nature are available with back supports and armrests.

Some are modular in design, meaning these components can be added or removed as required.

Extra-strong 'bariatric' stools are available, some with a weight tolerance of up to 44 stone.

These tools are ideal for very obese individuals, who may have difficulty standing at the sink or kitchen worktops.

These stools are made of strong steel, meaning they are heavier than standard perching stools.

Rubber or soft plastic caps, or feet, are fitted to the end of each leg. These components are called 'ferrules'.

Ferrules reduce the chance of stools slipping on hard surface flooring.

As perching stools are also used at the bathroom sink, where floors are often wet, this is an important feature.

Some stools feature ferrules with angled bases, meaning they contact the floor at an optimum angle to maximise contact and friction.

Most perching stools do not collapse for easy storage but there are one or two models which have this feature.