The Chartwell Kids Ottoman Bed: Where the Toys Actually Go

In a child's room the floor under the bed is usually the largest piece of unused space in the house, and it is normally filled by whatever gets pushed there at bedtime. The Chartwell kids ottoman bed turns that space into a single lined compartment with a lid.

Above it, the bed is the same shape as its plain sibling: a smooth unbroken headboard with a gently swept top edge that rises at the corners, upholstered in the same cloth as the sides and the base. The Chartwell kids upholstered ottoman bed is made to order in any of 29 colourways.

How the lift works

The mattress platform lifts on gas struts, opening the full area beneath it as one compartment. Because the Chartwell is built as a frame rather than a divan box, the sides stay upholstered and shaped, so when the bed is closed the storage is hidden completely. There is nothing that reads as a storage bed from across the room.

Gas struts matter here more than on an adult bed. They carry the weight of the mattress, so the lid is not a straight dead lift, but it is still an adult job rather than a child's, and it is worth deciding at the outset whether the compartment is for bedding and out-of-season clothes you open occasionally or for toys a child will want to reach daily.

Clearance to check before you order

• Above the bed: the platform travels upwards, so a sloped ceiling or a window sill over the bed can get in the way.
• At the side: you need standing room to lift from, which rules out wedging the bed between two walls on both long sides.
• The route in: measure the doorway and any turn on the stairs, not only the bedroom floor.

Three sizes

Finished sizes, measured across the bed at its widest point:

• Single 3FT: 96.5 cm wide by 205.7 cm long
• Small Double 4FT: 127 cm wide by 205.7 cm long
• Double 4FT6: 142 cm wide by 205.7 cm long

All three share the same length because the upholstered surround adds at the head and the foot. The size guide on the product page draws the bed from the side and from above with every size to the same scale, which is the quickest way to see whether a 4FT will leave you a walkway.

Twenty-nine colourways

Coniston, Naples, Chenille, Boucle, Plush Velvet and Linoso cloths between them give 29 colourways, and every upholstered part of the bed is finished in the one you choose. On a storage bed the lid edge gets handled constantly, so a flat mid tone such as Mink Coniston, Silver Chenille or Charcoal Coniston tends to wear its use better than Cream Plush Velvet. Pink Coniston and Blue Coniston are there if the room has a colour already.

Ordering, and getting it to the room

Ottoman beds are the one storage design that still works when a bed has to sit in a corner, which is why they suit children's rooms so often. If you would rather not have the lift at all, the Chartwell is also made as a plain frame with the same headboard, and the lift-up shapes are gathered in the kids ottoman range.

We deliver beds in Scotland and well beyond it, with delivery free within 50 miles of our Glasgow store and £50 past that. Mattresses are sold separately so the tension is your choice. Full sizes, all 29 cloths and the size guide are on the Chartwell ottoman page.