This is tricky in Water and Sanitation Development facility (WSDF North) Uganda we try to apply a ratio of 1 sink for 200 users but I have found it wanting mainly at peak hours.
Also, Another issue is about actual height of sinks currently we have put it between 50-70cm though its still not tested for efficiency across the age groups.
Issues of draining off waste water in Universal primary schools of about 1000 pupils has remained a stingy challenge.

As designers/manufacturers of handwash/water dispensers, we strongly believe that any system for water provision related to sanitation in schools, camps or new communities should prioritise non-manual activation of the water flow i.e. foot operated. If you can't guarantee training of washing hands 'before and after'you risk creating a serious point of contagion at the critical manual supply/recipient interface.But aid agencies generally persist in purveying primitive pipe/tap row solutions and local operators look to that as a satisfactory model/template. It isn't.
That is what our research showed and that is why we make all our models foot based... have not shown any for want of appearing to be advertising!

We totally agree with Michael about the need of touchless hand washing. Many children touching a tap contribute to the spreading of bacteria. There are some solutions already available which are waiting for wide implementation. We currently make efforts to implement one of them. Wish us good luck. S-teemer team.

Hi Daniel,

Your statement is quite interesting because it reflects a important issue of making decisions in schools in a context of limited resources, and as you clearly show us WASH is not the most urgent need in your case.

If you happen to visit schools located in arid and sub arid area you will be much surprised to see even clean water for consumption is problem leave alone water for washing hands to promote hygiene. There are several primary schools which even classroom is problem they school under tree without trained teacher.

However, I still think that installing a tippy tap is a no regret measure!
- it is costless: a recycled bottle and a rope, so it does take the resources for other actions
- it is possible to do it at "tree level" so it is something the teacher and student can do by themselves (like the girls building brick toilets with Peter Morgan if I remember well), can be proud of and which will have an immediate impact.
- it is a learning experience with small scale planning and maintenance and even can be used as a learning tool (in maths, science, biology/hygiene).

In the end, I would conclude that encouraging a school under a tree to install "low cost hand washing stations", is an initiative that is more empowering than it seems. Stakeholders need to act at their own level. There isn't much that pupils can do under the tree to improve teacher's training but there is much they can do to improve their health and well being.
Cecile

It is an interesting question that John is asking here - and I find it even more interesting that the first reaction is to start from a "standard" number.

I would try to approach it the other way around: How many students do you have in your school and what do you want to achieve with the handwashing station?
If you need taps for handwashing after toilet use, you can install one tap per toilet to make sure the max number of users can wash their hands simultaneously once they´re done.

However, if you plan for more and want the children to wash their hands at certain times, especially before lunch for example, then you need more. And rather than sticking to a certain number per station I would start with calculating from a logistics point of view. If you don´t have enough water outlets to cover 50% of students at the same time for a group handwashing activity or peak times during break before lunch, then it will simply take too much time from the schoolday/breaktime for it to be feasible in terms of covering all students and not losing too much time. If 100% of students can wash their hands in max 2 rounds within 10-15 min, there is a much better chance that it will happen and that it will continue to happen.

So ultimately the number depends on the number of students I would say. In terms of facility models - there are many out there. Many standard group washing facilities indeed cater to 15-25 students at a time, but there are also varieties of facilities that can cover way more or less. It´s a form follows function (and available materials) kind of approach, I´d say.

Amodel handwashing station for pupils in schools has to overcome all challenges faced earlier. these are: poor visibility, lack of water/ refilling frequently, lack of soap stand and lack of multiple outlets.

Dear Wangi,

We have developed different Group Hand Washing Stations with pipe water supply and with placing static tank, usually filled by cook cum helper MID-DAY-MEAL in schools. ODISHA, INDIA. I can share with you all photos too.
Er M S Khan

Dear M S Khan,

Would you like to share your group handwashing models and photos here in this thread (or in a new thread)?
Are they part of this publication?:
UNICEF, GIZ (2016). Scaling up group handwashing in schools - Compendium of group washing facilities across the globe. New York, USA; Eschborn, Germany

That compendium was mentioned on the forum by Jan Schlenk here:
forum.susana.org/160-handwashing-activit...ies-across-the-globe

Regards,
Elisabeth

Dear Elisabeth,

Thanks for response on the GPHWS. The details with different types, we developed, shall be sent to you with all photos very shortly.

with regards
M S Khan

Dear MS Khan,

Thanks for your reply and the very nice photos!
Does GPHWS stand for group handwashing station?

Please don't send the information to just me by e-mail but rather put them here for all to see and access on the forum. If you have lots of photos to share how about putting them into a Dropbox folder and then sharing the link?

Another option could be the same as what I suggested to Jaques here:

Regarding photos, I looked through your report and I like many of them! E.g. page 16 in the Pakistan report. Would it be possible that you can share with us ALL of your photos from those 4 reports? Just pop them into a dropbox folder and I could grab them from there? I would then upload them to the SuSanA flickr photo database and from there they get into the Wikimedia Commons photos repository of Wikipedia from where they can be shared further. If you don't want to make all available but only a selection, that's also fine - up to you. Sometimes it takes longer to make a selection though, that's why I thought sending the whole lot could be easier.

Regards,
Elisabeth

Dear Elisabeth,

Thanks for your updates. GPHWS is abbreviation form of Group Hand Washing Station. As you mention about photos same are attached herewith for your information.

Some of design photos are attached . If you need write up thereon can be sent as required.

Dear Elisabeth,

The photos are sent but it needs narration about its usages. The model are developed after use and knowing the pros & cons thereafter. If you wish I can send brief about those for better understanding.

with warm regards
M S Khan