‘Groenlaar’ Primary School Rumst


Huiswerk

  • Status:

    Design

  • Education type:

    GO! Education of the Flemish Community

  • Education level:

    Special Primary Education

  • Address:

    Rozenlaan 50, 2840 Reet

  • Client:

    GO! Education of the Flemish Community Groenlaar School Group

  • Contest:

    Open Call 12

  • Programme:

    classrooms, nursing area, staffroom, therapy rooms

  • Area:

    994m2

  • Number of classrooms:

    12 classrooms


Playful and compact multifunctionalism

In order to work more effectively, all type 1 pupils (with minor mental disabilities) at the Primary School for Special Education in Rumst will be moved from various sites to the site in the Rozenlaan. However, this green park-like site does not have much room for an extension for 150 new pupils. A demanding programme of requirements on less than 1,000 m2, a new building which respects and connects with existing buildings and trees, an architectural translation of the specific educational philosophy, and so on, are only some of the demands put forward to the five teams of designers in the Open Call.

Huiswerk architects, a literal translation of ‘making architecture’, cannot hide its affinity with building schools. Their reinterpretation of ‘the contemporary school building’ is a shining success story. The new building, which may seem amorphous at first sight, explicitly rejects the orthogonal character of the typical school buildings of the 1960s. However, the design is a strategic manoeuvre: the new building is located on the largest open space between the trees on the site, and only one oak tree and three small birch trees will be cut down. By building two stories and preserving the current playground, Huiswerk minimises the built-up footprint on the site. The red corrugated sheet elevations of the new building are a reference to the existing buildings, but at the same time they are a metaphor for the disappearance of the brick industry which gave the Rupel region its characteristic landscape.

Special education requires special classrooms: the classroom is a living room, a gym, a library, a den, a collection box, a craft room and a dance floor. The architect wanted to design an open and flexible interior concept, which meant that it would be easy to work with different classes at the same time. Because of the flexible accordion doors, the classrooms can easily be extended and the corridor becomes more than a place for circulation. The atypical shape of the classrooms creates inspirational corners, a sense of space and vistas. The playful approach can also be seen in the windows: varying heights for the window sills on the one hand conceal radiators, and on the other hand, create comfortable seats and reading corners.

With an ingenious clustering of classrooms – there is a multifunctional area for every three classes – the circulation is limited to a minimum, or in other words, used to maximum effect. With limited means, Huiswerk has conjured up a high quality school.