Replacing one of Islington’s most dilapidated school premises, Moreland Primary School addresses the local need for modern educational delivery.
Given the demand for space in Islington, the new facility needed to replace the existing unsuitable school, while also providing provisions for 420 pupils, a 56 place nursery and a children centre.
Education
Morgan Sindall, Islington Borough Council
Islington, London, UK
£10.3m
2016
Early consultation sessions with a variety of stakeholders highlighted the importance of civic presence, influencing the positioning of the building and the access routes. Increasing the sense of place, paths and entrances were interwoven with existing infrastructure, enhancing the urban grain of Moreland Street.
Adding to the rich urban fabric of Moreland Street, the high quality, robust brick facade reacts to the local vernacular, while colourful fins line the building, expressing the playful nature of a primary school setting.
The younger years classroom’s have been positioned on the ground level to allow direct access to the landscaped play spaces. The building hugs these external spaces, providing courtyards to protect students from urban noise and overlooking. Maximising external spaces, exciting roof terraces are scattered through the site allowing for quick access to external provision on all floors.
AJ Architecture Awards, Shortlisted, 2017
Brick Awards, Shortlisted, 2017
Local Authority Building Control, Best Educational Building, Shortlisted, 2017
The new street frontage celebrates itself as part of the public realm, interacting with the street and softening the bold materiality of the school. Internally, this state of the art education facility includes recreation, training and support facilities, designed and mapped to meet the needs of the local residents, making the new school a fantastic and much welcomed community resource.
