AWARDS:
2017 – FINALIST, Best Combined School, Victorian School Design Awards
This project responds to a range of site context and educational planning issues. The stage two building provides facilities for the school’s cohort of secondary students. As such a major emphasis in the design has been the flexible planning of specialist facilities to allow for both the long term expected enrolment of 200, and the peak, which is expected to be over 450. The area entitlements have been very carefully managed to maximise teaching space and the arrangement has been developed to create “mini-faculties” within the sub school.
Emphasis has also been given to the potential for community engagement and use of the facility. It is located on the Alamanda Boulevard frontage and has its own defined address. The aim is to provide a major linking space upon entry that provides for a range of uses both educational and social. The foyer and agora space will become the heart of the new senior school, and will link the school funded theatre, sports hall, administration and café with public amenities and the new two storey agora space which connects ground and first floors. This space then connects out into the senior court which will be the major outdoor space for this sub-school.
The new ‘agora’ will provide a major presentation and student gathering space. It will seat the entire senior school for presentations and will provide a casual meeting and study space for students.
The building was developed as a single structure to minimise the impact on the very constrained site, to limit the required amount of circulation space and service runs and to minimise the cost of ground works. The two storey structure provides a strong address for the senior school on Alamanda Boulevard, a key component in the school’s brief requirements.
The overall form and articulation of the building aim to minimise the sense of mass, while providing for an efficient overall envelope. The serrated façade on the East elevation, assists in visually reducing the bulk of the elevation, while providing for suitable shading to the windows in this façade. The north side of the building connects well to a new landscaped courtyard and outdoor workshop area. Glazing on this façade is maximised and a large lift up door from the Agora space provides for an excellent connection between the inside and outside spaces. Glazing to the West is almost eliminated, except for the inclusion of a large door to the gallery space. This section of façade has a large overhang and is further protected from the late afternoon sun by the mass of the sports hall.
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