RIAI | Irish Architecture Awards

Citation

Eastern Over €3,000,000

An elegant modern school building crisply detailed with an emphasis in its architecture upon the inherent quality of materials used. The care over detail is complemented by carefully designed spaces of varying scale around a courtyard plan, which avoid the institutional to form a suitable oasis for a new concept of learning.

Architect's Comment
North Kildare Educate Together Project is the first, Department of Education & Science, custom-built, integrated, primary school in this country. It has ten classrooms, including two specialised teaching classrooms for children with Autism.

The plan rotates around the central main courtyard, the ten classrooms acting as independent satellites, each with it's own world of 'studio' classroom, intimate 'den' and enclosed garden court. The general-purpose room, positioned close to the main entrance, 'captures' the south sun with its large roof light, to animate the largest space in the school.
Transparency and layering throughout the school connect the main spaces with each classroom.

This school explores the architectural possibilities of developing an approach to construction. The Department of Education & Science require that schools are single storey, where possible, and are constructed in exposed concrete block work. Within these constraints, together within the strict cost limits, we discovered the potential of the use of a precast concrete roof. The rationalisation of this construction method actually liberated the design and produced a building with a sense of 'weight', which was important to us.

We worked within the maximum structurally allowable pitch of the pre-cast concrete roof slabs, which is between 4 degrees to 7 degrees. Pre-cast planks span between classroom walls and one or two planks are omitted to form light 'scoops' and ventilation chimneys to each classroom.

The school, anchored to the flat ground, has a copper clad, wave-like roof with the light chimneys, reaching to the sky.

Clients' Comment
In North Kildare Educate Together School the architects excelled in the challenge of incorporating creative ideas and innovative design within the parameters of the Department of Education and Science's accommodation brief.

The school has the unique combination of indoor and outdoor teaching spaces. The circulation spaces overlook a central courtyard garden and the theme of "bringing the outdoors in" continues into classrooms where each class is enjoying its own individual garden.

In our school child centredness is one the tenets of the school ethos .This has been reflected in the classroom layout. Each room has its own den area, a space loved by children and teachers alike.

One of the most remarkable features of the building is the wonderful light filled classrooms and corridors  throughout. On the darkest of winter days the combination of north/south light gives the optimum feeling of spaciousness, warmth and colour - features rarely found in school buildings.

A central part of the building design has been the integration of the country's first purpose built unit for children with Autism. This required research into the very specific needs of these children and once again a child centred approach was taken by the architects. This unit is now a prototype for future units in the country. Our school community is very proud of our unique building. The staff feels privileged to work with the children in an educational space so appropriately designed to meet all our needs.