There’s something that church chairs have to do that most other chairs don’t. Provide somewhere to store a book. Whether it’s copies of the Bible, hymn sheets or orders of service, church chairs with book boxes are an ideal way of keeping everything neat and tidy in your church or chapel. So, if you’re looking for the best church chairs with book boxes, keep reading…
Do you need church chairs with book boxes?
This may seem like a counterintuitive point to begin this article with, but do you actually require church chairs with book boxes?
We ask you this question because an increasing number of churches, chapels, and crematoriums are going ‘paper free’ (or at least greatly reducing the number of books and papers they are using for services).
This is because of the increasing adoption of alternative methods of conveying information during services.
For example, many churches and chapels now project the words for hymns onto a wall or projector screen rather than handing out hymn sheets.
Likewise, a growing number of congregants choose to read Bible verses and scriptures on their smartphone or Kindle/e-reader device.
Having said all that – there are still many churches that like to keep things traditional and retain physical copies of the Bible and hymn books etc for their congregants.
The point is, have a think about your needs, and whether they are likely to change in the future, before deciding to invest in church chairs with book boxes.
How to buy church chairs with book boxes
This may seem like another strange point to address – however, it’s an important one.
Let us explain…
In the majority of cases, book boxes are purchased separately – as optional extras – from the chairs themselves (there are very few chairs where the book boxes are structurally integrated into the chair itself).
As the image above shows, you often have a choice of book boxes to pick from for your selected church chairs. Simply scroll down the image description until you reach the section titled ‘Bookbox’.
What are the different types of book boxes for church chairs?
Should you come to the conclusion that you do want to buy church chairs with book boxes, then you’ll find yourself with some decisions to make. As the section earlier points out, in many cases you will have a choice of book boxes and chairs.
Below, we’ve set out the different book boxes that are available, as well as the best chairs to use with each type.
Curved Bookbox
One of the most popular book boxes here at Rosehill is our Curved Bookbox. Manufactured from a gently curved piece of finished plywood, the Curved Bookbox has open ends – making it easy to clean. This prevents the book box from becoming a dust trap and accumulating detritus.
The Curved Bookbox also comes with a set of screws – making it straightforward to retroactively fit it to your church chairs. Don’t worry, if you order it at the same time as the chairs, they’ll come fitted and you won’t need to attach them yourself.
As standard, our Curved Bookbox comes in an elegant beech finish. However, other colours are available on request. Contact us to find out more. Note, in order to properly match, the Curved Bookbox must be ordered at the same as you’re ordering your chairs. Should you order the Curved Bookbox separately, it is only available in beech.
The Curved Bookbox is ideal for use with:
*When fitted to the Maxim Deluxe, it doesn’t impede the stackability of the chairs.
Sliding Bookbox
Another type of book box that you’ll find used on church chairs is the Sliding Bookbox. This was developed by Rosehill (and is our own registered design) to provide storage while not hindering the stacking of our R1 Ultra and Churchill Ultra chairs.
As the name suggests, the Sliding Bookbox can slide forward and backward, extending when you need to store a book, and contracting when not in use, keeping the chairs neat and tidy.
This makes the Sliding Bookbox ideal for stackable church chairs that are regularly moved around and stored within a church, chapel, or crematorium.
The Sliding Bookbox also has the benefit of looking very neat and compact – however, it is slightly smaller than other book boxes, meaning that larger books – such as hymn books or musical notation books – will hang slightly over each side of the book box.
Like the Curved Bookbox, the Sliding Bookbox is made with a plywood bottom section and a hardwood outer section that matches the frame of your chosen chair.
Note – the Sliding Bookbox must be ordered at the same time you order your church chairs. It cannot be retrospectively fitted to chairs.
The Sliding Bookbox is ideal for use with:
Hardwood Bookbox
If you want a more traditional-looking book box, then the Hardwood Bookbox is a great choice.
This is another common – and popular – type of book box that you’ll find used in churches, chapels, crematoriums and other places of worship in general.
With solid ends and sides, the Hardwood Bookbox is a spacious book box that’ll keep stored items secure (there’s no danger of books falling out the sides thanks to the closed ends of the box).
The Hardwood Bookbox is also very solidly constructed and, as you can see, fits tightly to the chair.
Here at Rosehill (as the pictures above demonstrate), we offer the Hardwood Bookbox in two fitting types:
- Mounted at seat level, i.e. fits to the rear of the seat part of the chair.
- Mounted at back pad level, i.e. fits to the rear and bottom of the chair’s back pad. This raises the bookbox to a higher level for easier access for those with mobility issues.
As the name suggests, the Hardwood Bookbox is made of a combination of hardwood such as beech and plywood, meaning it’ll be extremely hard wearing and long-lasting. In terms of construction, the side and back sections are made from hardwood whilst the bottom section is plywood.
Note – the Hardwood Bookbox must be ordered at the same time as you are ordering your chairs. It cannot be retrospectively fitted to a chair.
The Hardwood Bookbox is ideal for use with:
Spacer Bookbox
Another popular type of book box you’ll find used together with church chairs are spacer book boxes.
These are book boxes which play two roles – they store books and link chairs together. Thanks to this added functionality, spacer book boxes are very popular for churches that tend to use many fixed rows of individual church chairs.
As they create a gap, or space, between chairs, lots of our customers like the Spacer Bookbox as it provides their congregations with more elbow room. This contrasts with chairs which are connected together with keyhole links – which sit close together.
Like the Hardwood Bookbox, linking book boxes have solid sides and ends, but also have metal fittings that allow them to ‘slot’ into place between two chairs, thus linking them together.
Here at Rosehill, we are able to supply our Spacer Bookbox. The Spacer Bookbox can be used with any wooden framed church chair once the appropriate metal fixing slots are fitted to the chairs.
Typically made from a hardwood such as beech for the sides and ends, and with a plywood bottom, the Spacer Bookbox is robust and will have a long service life. We are also able to make the Spacer Bookbox from other materials and with different finishes to match your chairs.
The Spacer Bookbox is popular, not only because of the added functionality it provides, but because it is highly customisable in terms of size. In fact, we can supply the Spacer Bookbox in nearly any size or dimensions you require. For example, choirs often have large music books or binders as well as wanting their music next to them – especially when there isn’t a chair in front of them.
The Removable Bookbox is ideal for use with:
- Any model of wooden framed church chair.
Book pockets
Your book boxes don’t have to be made of wood! Another popular option for chair-based book storage is book pockets.
These are typically made from a durable, contract-quality fabric and are directly stitched into the backpad of the chair. This creates a nearly seamless, very tidy look – especially when the pocket isn’t in use.
One drawback to book pockets, however, is that they can sometimes be mistaken for bins – with people leaving sweet wrappers and tissues in them! As such, if you do choose book pockets for your church chairs, you’ll need to check them before each service.
Book pockets are ideal for use with:
Mesh book pockets
Like book pockets, mesh book pockets are a lightweight, simple way of adding book storage to your church chairs – but they have the added benefit of being able to see what they’re holding!
Mesh book pockets are not only convenient for the user (i.e. they don’t have to rummage around to find what they want), but they also deter people from using them as litter bins!
A quality mesh book pocket will typically be stitched into the fabric of the back pad, providing a really neat finish.
Mesh book pockets are ideal for use with:
Those are the main types of book box that you’ll typically find in use with church chairs.
If you’re not sure which type is right for you, or you’d like to find out more about a particular model or discuss custom models, contact us, and we’ll be happy to help!
Church chairs with integrated book boxes
As we mentioned earlier, it’s also possible to buy church chairs where the book box is a structural, integrated part of the chair (in other words, it isn’t ‘added on’ to the chair). Here at Rosehill we supply the Integra, which has a book box incorporated into the frame of the chair itself, just behind the seat pad.
Whilst this is a clever solution, we find the Integra to be more suitable for contexts where congregants won’t be seated for long periods, e.g. such as in crematoriums or short services at chapels.
For contexts where congregants will be sitting for longer periods of time, we’d suggest using traditional wooden framed and upholstered church chairs with an added book box (as described in the section above), as those models have a larger seat.
Church chairs with underseat book storage
It’s also possible to buy church chairs which have an underseat storage area which can be used for book storage. This is in the form of either underails or an under-shelf. As well as storing books, they’re handy for kneelers or hassocks too.
These aren’t book boxes per se, but rather shelves which can be used to store items other than books.
Chairs with underseat storage are a great option if you don’t like the look of book boxes attached to the back of chairs.
However, be aware that the shelves on these types of chairs don’t normally have raised sides (or at the very most have a lip). This means, unless you’re very gentle when moving these chairs, any stored books on the shelf can easily slip off. They’re a little lower to reach for older parishioners too.
Examples of church chairs with underseat book storage include:
Alternative ways to store books in churches
You aren’t restricted to book boxes or underseat storage when it comes to storing your books and other similar items in church.
It’s also possible to buy freestanding book trolleys. These allow you to keep all of your books in a single place and are ideal for placing in the entrance area of your church.
Using a book trolley means congregants have to take and return the books from a single location (rather than individually at their seats). But, this can have an added social aspect as people strike up conversations at the beginning and end of services.
Here at Rosehill, our freestanding book trolleys are double-sided with three tapered shelves to offer maximum storage capacity. They are made from solid beech hardwood for durability and include castor wheels for ease of movement.
Our book trolleys are highly customisable, and can also be made from oak or ash and with various wood stains available. We can also manufacture custom sizes – so if you have something in particular in mind for your book trolley – let us know! We’ll be happy to help.
Other accessories to accompany your church chairs
In addition to book boxes, there are a number of other accessories which you may find useful to accompany your church chairs.
These include chorister shelves, modesty panels, and open rails. Below, you’ll find more information about each of these accessories.
Chorister shelves
Chorister shelves are hinged platforms which affix to the rear of a seat’s back pad. The hinge will usually be located at the top of the back pad, allowing the person sitting in the seat behind to place sheet music, hymn books or other papers on the shelf.
Modesty panels
Modesty panels are ideal for churches which have moved away from pews and that use individual church chairs.
A modesty panel allows you to recreate that pew ‘feel’ and also provide a degree of privacy to the people sitting behind it.
Here at Rosehill, our modesty panels are manufactured to order, so it’s easy to select a modesty panel that perfectly fits your church. Made with a solid beech frame (although it’s possible to upgrade to oak), with feet providing a stable base, our modesty panels are designed to last.
You can also choose from either a wooden or upholstered panel on the front. What’s more, you can also specify your modesty panel to include a shelf on which you can store books. This is perfect for the front row of seating where users would otherwise not have a book box in front of them.
Open rails
A popular alternative to modesty panels is open rails. These are basically modesty panels which don’t have a wooden or upholstered panel attached to the front side. They are practical, but with a lighter, more open look which is popular for modern churches or crematoria.
Whilst open rails don’t provide the privacy of modesty panels, they do help to divide and delineate spaces and mark out areas of a church or chapel, while providing storage for the front row of chairs. Here at Rosehill, we are able to supply open rails which feature shelving which can be used to store books and other papers.
Like our modesty panels, our open rails are made to order, so we can create rails of the ideal length and specification for your church or chapel.
Custom book storage solutions for churches
As you’ve just read, there are plenty of go-to options when it comes to providing book storage within your church.
However, there’s a key point we want to emphasise.
A huge number of our book storage options are customisable. This is because we understand that no two churches are the same.
For example, you may use larger than average choir books or Bibles. In which case, we can manufacture book boxes to fit.
The point is – if you have a particular requirement – it’s more than likely that the Rosehill team can accommodate it. Give us a call on 0161 485 1717 or email: sales@rosehill.co.uk and we’ll be more than happy to provide you with free advice and information.
Rosehill: the UK’s number one supplier of church chairs
Whether you want church chairs with book boxes or without, you’ll find the perfect seating options for your church here at Rosehill.
For 40 years, Rosehill has been supplying churches and chapels of all denominations with the highest-quality church chairs (and related accessories). We know that buying new chairs is a big investment for most churches, so we take a collaborative approach to ensure you get exactly what you need.
Explore Rosehill’s church chair range now
For more church furniture buying guides, advice and information, read the Rosehill blog…
What Furniture Do You Need for a Crematorium? | Guide to Buying Church Chairs for Your Place of Worship | How to Find What You Want on the Rosehill Website
