PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag.


Geurst & Schulze architects

PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag (enlarged view in image gallery)

Photos: Mirjam Madiol and Christian Richters

  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • PC nursery and primary school Prinsehaghe Den Haag
  • Status:

    Realized

  • Education type:

    Free Subsidised Education

  • Education level:

    Primary Education (pre-school + primary)

  • Client:

    the Foundation Christelijk Onderwijs Haaglanden

  • Number of classrooms:

    13

  • Completion:

    2003-2004


A new type of school: compact and yet transparent.

In the city centre of The Hague, the Foundation Christelijk Onderwijs Haaglanden built a nursery and primary school in 2003-2004 of 13 classrooms. This building was awarded the Dutch school buildings prize in 2006. Due to the limited open space in the walled-in building block, the school was restricted to a very compact building volume. Only in this way sufficient room was left to play and a decent distance was kept to the garden walls of the surrounding buildings. The brick volume is beam shaped with three construction levels. On the short side where the entrance is situated the building is articulated with a somewhat higher volume of the gymnastics room on the top floor. Such a compact and simple building volume limits the building cost and maintenance costs of the facades, and is equally beneficial for the energy use.

The school building is a massive construction. However, the structure was designed in a clever way so as to still give the floor plans great flexibility in case any layout changes are made in the future. The structure is supported by the massive outer walls, together with two longitudinal supporting walls in the interior. These divide the rectangular floor plan into three areas of 7.20 metres wide. The classrooms are situated in the zones along the facades, and can be joined into larger spaces by means of flexible walls. The central space is open over the whole height and receives light from roof domes. The hall also contains the main staircase that goes in one single length from the bottom to the top floor. This central space connects everything with each other and provides a good overview of what goes on at the school. It gives the school a strong sense of belonging together.

The building contains two spaces for after-school child care. These are accessible via a second entrance in the side elevation and a second staircase. Through this staircase and entrance the gymnastics room on the top floor can also be made accessible for after-school use. On the other side of the building is a third fire-proof staircase. The building does not have a lift, which is a disadvantage according to the current standards of accessibility. There is also an open play room in next to the main entrance. Together with the central hall this forms an interesting place for meetings, celebrations, theatre performances and games. The sanitary facilities are linked to the central hall and spread over the different levels. Above the entrance and below the gymnastics room is another large room which fits in perfectly with the building, although this was not required. For this multi-purpose room-cum-library special pieces of furniture were designed by Marieke Van Diemen.

When designing a compact building, choices have to be made. Which spaces are to be put on the ground floor? In this building the six classrooms for the youngest children are on the ground floor, and the rooms for the school management team and the teachers are installed on the top floor. The first floor contains another five classrooms for the older children and on the second floor there are two classrooms for the oldest children. As a result, the school management team is to some extent more difficult to reach, but on the other hand the number of stairs which the children have to take during their breaks is limited as much as possible.