Petillon Ceuppens . Schenk Hattori Architecture Atelier . photos: © Franziska Krieck
The new school is located in the internal area of an oversized and green block of housing area in Melle (Ghent area). The ambition was to create a park school where the relationship between children and the surrounding nature is stimulated.
The positioning of the school is well-considered and divides the park into a rather private side with a playground for the school and a public side, as a new and generous park for the inhabitants of Melle. This gives the school a double function: on the one hand, the building acts as a boundary between these two sides but on the other hand it can also take on a connecting role depending on the needs and use. The more public ground floor, is specifically designed to accommodate extracurricular activities, such as the music academy and community events. The classrooms are therefore mainly located on the first floor, so that the ground floor can actually fulfil its public function in socio-cultural life without disrupting school life. The school building then becomes a hybrid typology in which the security of the domestic and the interaction of the public are united.
Finally, the positioning of the sports hall invites the users to further explore the public park.
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