Eldon Primary School: New Early Years Unit
Work completed on Eldon Primary School’s new Early Years Unit, Edmonton, Enfield, London, in April 2005.
Project Architect and lead design role from Inception to Completion.
The building’s construction and fit out was funded through the Government’s Targeted Capital Fund following the submission of an initial feasibility study and bid to the DfES (Department for Education and Science).
The purpose of the new building was to provide much needed new accommodation to relieve the overcrowding within the existing Infant and Junior School buildings. The brief was to comply with the DfES Guidelines and set criteria for Primary School and Nursery Accommodation, but also to come up with a solution that acknowledged the current trends and changes in Educational Buildings which are covered in the DfES Building Bulletins, in particular: Building Schools For the Future and Exemplar Designs Solutions. The wider brief included that the building should be visually permeable, make use of daylight and areas should be colour coded to enable the young children to navigate themselves within the building.
The feasibility study showed that the best solution would to be to provide a New Build Early Years Unit housing a new Nursery and 5No new Reception Year Classes as well as the office, staffroom and administration front of the school. Thus allowing a re-organisation within the existing buildings. The only site available for the new building was on the Playing Field. After negotiations with the Planning Department and Sport England, a site in the corner of the field closest to the existing building was agreed on, to minimise the impact on the sporting use of the field. We were able to capitalise on this by having the building radiate around the corner of the cricket square, making best use of the southeast orientation and the warming effect of the rising sun.
The design of the building that faces the field uses steel, glass, coloured panels and glazing, to be more reminiscent of a playing field pavilion. Whereas the elevational treatment of the north west side of the building uses stock brick and slate roofs, being more sympathetic to the existing school’s Victorian Buildings that it faces. This also allows a greater amount of daylight into the teaching space on the southeast and smaller windows on the northwest side.
A central opening rooflight provides daylight direct into the heart of the building and glazed screens allow visual permeability within the building and encourage the corridor to be used as an overflow teaching space as well as for circulation. The floor design in the corridor follows the ‘yellow brick road’ linking up all the main rooms within the building.
Project Architect and lead design role from Inception to Completion.
The building’s construction and fit out was funded through the Government’s Targeted Capital Fund following the submission of an initial feasibility study and bid to the DfES (Department for Education and Science).
The purpose of the new building was to provide much needed new accommodation to relieve the overcrowding within the existing Infant and Junior School buildings. The brief was to comply with the DfES Guidelines and set criteria for Primary School and Nursery Accommodation, but also to come up with a solution that acknowledged the current trends and changes in Educational Buildings which are covered in the DfES Building Bulletins, in particular: Building Schools For the Future and Exemplar Designs Solutions. The wider brief included that the building should be visually permeable, make use of daylight and areas should be colour coded to enable the young children to navigate themselves within the building.
The feasibility study showed that the best solution would to be to provide a New Build Early Years Unit housing a new Nursery and 5No new Reception Year Classes as well as the office, staffroom and administration front of the school. Thus allowing a re-organisation within the existing buildings. The only site available for the new building was on the Playing Field. After negotiations with the Planning Department and Sport England, a site in the corner of the field closest to the existing building was agreed on, to minimise the impact on the sporting use of the field. We were able to capitalise on this by having the building radiate around the corner of the cricket square, making best use of the southeast orientation and the warming effect of the rising sun.
The design of the building that faces the field uses steel, glass, coloured panels and glazing, to be more reminiscent of a playing field pavilion. Whereas the elevational treatment of the north west side of the building uses stock brick and slate roofs, being more sympathetic to the existing school’s Victorian Buildings that it faces. This also allows a greater amount of daylight into the teaching space on the southeast and smaller windows on the northwest side.
A central opening rooflight provides daylight direct into the heart of the building and glazed screens allow visual permeability within the building and encourage the corridor to be used as an overflow teaching space as well as for circulation. The floor design in the corridor follows the ‘yellow brick road’ linking up all the main rooms within the building.
