Shire sells the Shire Artisan Ouse Pocket 3000 Mattress as ideal for people with back aches. I don't agree. A harder bed isn't the answer for most sore backs, and medium-firm is my starting point for nearly everyone. Buy the 3000 only if you're a heavy back or front sleeper who knows extra firm works for you.
The same natural build, set to extra firm
It shares the Ouse construction: pocket springs that move independently, deep fillings of cotton, wool, silk and cashmere, hand-tufting, a soft viscose cover, turning handles and air vents, all 32cm deep and double-sided. Shire rates it extra firm.
For the right sleeper this is a well-built extra firm mattress. Natural fillings keep it cooler than an extra firm foam would, and turning it spreads the wear an extra firm surface shows where you lie.
Wool and cotton on two sleeping sides is the best thing about any Ouse, and the 3000 has it. Buy it for the extra firm feel, though, and never because the bigger number sounds like an upgrade.
Why I'd push back on the back-ache claim
Extra firm suits a narrow group: heavier people who sleep on their back or front and want to lie on top of the bed. Everyone else will feel pressure at the hips and shoulders, and side sleepers will wake sore. If back pain is the reason you're shopping, start with medium-firm, and see your GP if the pain lasts.
Every Ouse listing at Archers carries one shared set of reviews, so they speak for the range, not the 3000 alone. Owners who bought for a bad back say they're happy, and I'll credit that. One who found theirs very firm was glad they hadn't gone for an orthopaedic mattress instead. Happy owners of an extra firm mattress are mostly people who already knew they wanted one.
If extra firm is too much, Archers swaps it once, with nothing back
Archers' comfort guarantee is your way down a rung, and it's an exchange, never a refund. Drop to the firm Ouse 2000 and you get nothing back for the difference, because the 2000 is the cheaper mattress. You get one swap, and you pay for the redelivery.
Two conditions catch people out. Buy a Purecare protector at checkout with the 3000 and keep it on the bed the whole time. And don't ring early: Archers wants you settled in first, then asks you to get in touch inside a short window before the guarantee runs out. I'd put that date in my calendar the day it arrived, because a window like that is easy to sleep through. Archers sends a bag for the swap, and the 3000 has to be in it.
Firm, or extra firm for less
The Ouse 2000 is firm rather than extra firm. It's the one I'd send most back sleepers to. If you're buying an extra firm mattress on a budget, the Highgrove Solar Orthopocket 1500 gets you extra firm on pocket springs, two-sided, for less money.
