Many had already voted with their feet, as the vast empty spaces around the perimeter of the exhibition hall showed. There were fewer large glossy displays by the big players, and much of the space was taken by smaller regional traders.

But the good news was the emphasis on quality. Almost all the regular exhibitors had product ranges that looked better, were more reliable and durable. These ranged from elegant new storage units with lockable tambour doors from Emmerich to crumble-free lead pencils from Staedtler for special needs children.

But despite discounting, dealing and generous support services, suppliers talked of being out-bid by low-cost, low-quality products (not on display), chosen by cost-cutting school bursars. And publications on the Design and Technology Association stand reminded visitors of the continuing decline in primary and secondary school capitation levels.

Competition for what cash remains was strong. The National Council for Vocational Qualifications and most of the examination boards were present in strength, fighting hard for territory, regardless of traditional boundaries. The Wiltshire-based purchasing organisation, The Consortium, offered reasonably-priced resources to schools nationwide at the show it attracted teachers with teams of children, showing them how to build the second Severn Bridge with its supplies. A free project file, The Bridge Adventure, was in hot demand.

Also high on the list of attractions was the StarDome from Inter-Action. A class of 30 can crawl into the large inflated silver dome and experience a professional multimedia presentation of either Earth in Space or Sound and Light (rather like bringing the London Planetarium to school) at a cost of Pounds 58 or Pounds 65 respectively per show.

Wood’n Fun displayed ingenious three-dimensional wood games called Stepets, for enhancing the dexterity, co-ordination and tactile and cognitive skills of special needs pupils. These were beautifully made in high-quality materials.

Unilab is offering Reference Mechanisms for Nuffield Design and Technology. These are kits of pre-cut parts for self-assembly to help key stage 3 and 4 pupils develop their own mechanisms for studying changing types of movement, forces, speed, distance, axes and rotations.

Keystage Design had an impressive low-voltage control console which offered great flexibility at a reasonable price. Capable of free-standing or fixed use, and easy integration with most existing workstations, it comes with a free pneumatic kit.

But as the hall emptied, one teacher summed it all up: “The quality pupils are there, quality resources are there and the teachers aren’t that bad. Why can’t we deliver more?” His answer, in a word, was funding.

Design and Technology Association, tel: 01789 470007 ,Emmerich, tel: 01233 622684, Inter-Action StarDome, tel: 0171 583 2652, Keystage Design, tel: 01942 526201, Staedtler, tel: 01443 237421, Unilab, tel: 01254 681222, Wood’n Fun, tel: 0114 285 4466, The Consortium, tel: 01225 777333