e d u c a t i o n

the sussex inst i tute, sussex univers i ty

evel ine lowe pr imary, southwark

crossways school , dorset

kemsley school , kent

queens inc losure, hampshire

sussex univers i ty

merry lee school , g lasgow

southwark v ictor ian schools

k ingsmead school , canterbury

pi lgr im’s school , bedford

lewisham schools

woodlea school , hampshire

s e l e c t e d e d u c a t i o n a l b u i l d i n g s 1 9 9 3 – 2 0 1 3

John Pardey Archi tects was establ ished

in 1988 as a sole t rader pract ice in

conjunct ion with teaching at severa l

schools of archi tecture. The pract ice

launched in 2000, now employ ing 12

staff . The commiss ions have over the

years grown f rom pr ivate houses to large

internat ional schemes.

Whi le we became know for our new-bui ld

houses which we have gained nat ional

recogni t ion and received many awards,

we a lso work on large scale res ident ia l

pro jects and have a part icu lar passion

for educat ional bui ld ings.

Over the years we have worked

a longside Si r Col in Stansf ie ld Smith, the

pre-eminent educat ional archi tect of the

post-war era, on many school pro jects,

Being a medium-sized pract ice, we

can offer c l ients a personal serv ice

with the involvement of our d i rectors at

a l l stages of the design process. Our

partner ing with large internat ional f i rms

of archi tecture a lso g ives us the unique

opportuni ty to design large schemes

both in the UK and abroad.

The pract ice has gained some th i r ty-

e ight nat ional and internat ional des ign

awards.

Our work has been widely exhib i ted and

publ ished. John Pardey is an external

examiner at Oxford Univers i ty and author

of two books on Danish archi tecture.

RIBA Southern Reg ion Award 2001, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013

Shor t- l i s ted for the 2009 St i r l ing Award’s Stephen Lawrence Pr ize

Shor t- l i s ted for the 2011 Manser Meda l and Downland Pr ize

Grand Des igns Award W inner 2007

Voted one of Br i ta in ’s top ten pract ices in Grand Des igns magaz ine in 2012.

Gold Meda l for Arch i tecture in Wales 2013

a b o u t u s

t h e d e s i g n p r o c e s s

Since i ts foundat ion, John Pardey Archi tects have gained considerable exper ience and recogni t ion in the educat ional sector which

represents a s igni f icant percentage of our current work load. We have considerable exper ience in the f ie ld, ranging f rom pr imary

and jun ior schools to univers i ty bui ld ings. This exper ience has been supplemented by the inc lus ion of S i r Col in Stansf ie ld Smith in

our team as educat ional consul tant unt i l h is death in 2013 – Col in was the pre-eminent archi tect in the educat ional sector, hav ing

gained the RIBA Gold Medal in 1991 for h is contr ibut ion, heading Hampshire County Archi tects, to school bui ld ing.

We have the desi re to develop schools that work and interact, not just bui ld ings that are the prov is ion of accommodat ion. Our a im

is to prov ide att ract ive, imaginat ive and st imulat ing env i ronments which are a lso safe and secure p laces for learn ing, inc lus ive and

open for wider community use. Crucia l ly, des ign should make a major contr ibut ion to ra is ing standards through better teaching

and learn ing.

Investment in the educat ion and future of our chi ldren need both inspi rat ion and exper ience. We bel ieve our pract ice, work ing

with a good team of consul tants, have both the youthfu l energy and enthusiasm, l inked to inva luable exper ience, that is needed to

create the best teaching, learn ing and socia l env i ronments that , together wi th susta inable design, wi l l inspi re and mot ivate young

people to grow.

We have extensive exper ience in publ ic consul tat ion, and are proud to say that we have a good track record of br inging the

local community on board to fee l as they have contr ibuted, as wel l as being a cont inu ing source of inspi rat ion for the pro ject . In

part icu lar worth ment ioning are the successfu l publ ic consul tat ions for the Deluxe F i lm Studios masterplan in Denham, Evel ine

Lowe Pr imary School in Southwark and f ina l ly for a 735 uni t res ident ia l s i te in Col indale, where we have been involved in publ ic

consul tat ion for the Col indale Act ion Area Plan.

‘The Eve l ine Lowe Pro ject is runn ing to programme – i t ’s progress ing faster than a l l the other pro jects . ’‘John Pardey Arch i tects are exce l lent – they know schoo ls and got to know th is one qu ick ly and e ff ic ient ly. They even coped wi th a sudden change of Head Teacher. ’

Bar ry Mason, Pro ject Manager, Southwark Schoo ls for the Future

d e s i g n p h i l o s o p h y

We bel ieve that s ix basic pr inc ip les

should underpin the design of

educat ional bui ld ings:

1 Asenseofplace.

The bui ld ing should engage wel l

wi th i ts sett ing and have a sense of

belonging to i ts env i ronment. Coupled

with th is s imple premise, is the idea

of creat ing an enclosure – a space

with in the school that is at i ts heart .

Th is idea of an enclosed educat ional

env i ronment is not new – schools such

as W inchester, Harrow, Eton, l ike the

col leges of Oxford and Cambr idge, have

succeeded in a col leg iate env i ronment

that is overwhelming in the message

of educat ional authent ic i ty. This is

not about the pr iv i leged wor ld of such

places, rather the att i tude that they

engender, for they a l l offer beaut i fu l

env i ronments even i f the i r bui ld ings are

now technica l ly def ic ient . The chal lenge

new is to f ind a modern equiva lent that

is equal ly at t ract ive yet a lso funct ional .

2 Learning

As teaching methods inev i tably evolve,

as seen in the journey f rom blackboards

to laptops, f lex ib i l i ty is key. We enjoy

the idea that c lassbases can be h ighly

f lex ib le to a low for a very wide range of

teaching techniques. Shel tered outdoor

learn ing spaces are equal ly important.

3 Movement

A school layout should be der ived f rom

the necessi ty to contro l movement, yet

inc lus iveness must remain paramount.

4 Community

A school should be seen as a v i ta l

part of i ts community. I t should offer

uses outs ide of school hours to be a

community asset.

5 Environment

A school should be designed t io min imse

i ts impact on the env i ronment and

maximise passive energy strategies such

as excel lent insulat ion of bui ld ing fabr ic,

natura l l ight ing and vent i lat ion.The

use of natura l mater ia ls and landscape

enhances any school env i ronment to

create an env i ronment that is a joy to

inhabi t .

6 Legibi l i ty

Internal ly and external ly, the bui ld ing

and i ts s i te, the mater ia ls and displays

of work, should contr ibute to the

educat ional exper ience.

t h e s u s s e x i n s t i t u t e

Sussex Univers i ty

completed 2004

£760K

l o c a t i o n

s t a t u s

c o n t r a c t

Fol lowing a reorganisat ion at Sussex

Univers i ty f rom 22 departments into s ix

new schools, John Pardey Archi tects

won the RIBA compet i t ion to prov ide s ix

new School Centres at Basi l Spence’s

l is ted campus.

Our designs are an archi tectura l

response to the heavy, monumenta l ,

earthbound language of the ex ist ing

bui ld ings- us ing l ightweight,

e legant, f loat ing e lements to create

a complementary language without

recourse to past iche.

A new double height foyer, conceived

as a fo lded, a lumin ium clad plane, cedar

l ined internal ly, forms a ‘gateway’ into

the school and th is l inks d i rect ly to a

new steel f ramed loggia structure that

wraps around two s ides to create a

semi-enclosed court that l inks the two

blocks that house the Inst i tute.

e v e l i n e l o w e p r i m a r y s c h o o l

London Borough of Southwark

2010

£7M

RIBA Internat ional ‘Schools for the Future’

winner 2008

l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

c o n t r a c t

Southwark Counci l and the RIBA ran an

internat ional Design Compet i t ion for the

modernisat ion of three pr imary Schools

in 2007.

John Pardey Archi tects won the

compet i t ion for the re-design and

extension of Evel ine Lowe School ahead

of 90 entr ies.

The compet i t ion was part of the

Southwark schools for the future

programme that a ims to t ransform

educat ion prov is ion in Southwark.

The programme inc ludes academies,

secondary schools, pr imary schools and

chi ldren’s centres.

The 1967 Evel ine Lowe school in

Bermondsey was the f i rst of the new

open plan schools in Br i ta in and holds

a unique place in Br i t ish educat ional

h istory and is a resul t Grade I I l is ted.

The compet i t ion br ie f was to refurb ish

the bui ld ing and add a new upper

school . We based our design on the

ex ist ing garden spaces which now

centre on a large centra l court . The new

bui ld ings develop a layout that cont inues

and updates the spat ia l p lanning of the

ex ist ing school .

The pro ject ga ined planning and l is ted

bui ld ing consent on budget and ahead of

programme and the pro ject wi l l complete

in 2010.

Crossways, Dorset

2006

£1.7M

l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

c o n t r a c t

c r o s s w a y s f i r s t s c h o o l

A new 1FE pr imary school for the

town of Crossways re locates a f i rst

school f rom the neighbour ing v i l lage of

Owermoigne and is designed for future

expansion in three phases, f rom an in i t ia l

1 Form Entry, to 2 FE and u l t imate ly, a

fu l l pr imary school .

At each stage, the bui ld ing reta ins

coherence by v i r tue of the centra l

courtyard- a p lay space and a garden-

that prov ides a sanctuary for the chi ldren

and a sense of ident i ty for the school .

There are s ix main e lements expressed

as s imple t imber c lad boxes with

sweeping curved roofs to the c lassroom

blocks arranged around the centra l

courtyard with in a rendered wal l

enclosure.

A n ine metre h igh c lock and bel l tower

at the corner of a wal led garden s iggnals

the school to the wider ne ighbourhood.

Kemsley, Kent

2005

l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

k e m s l e y s c h o o l

Fol lowing our RIBA Susta inable School

Compet i t ion win for Kingsmead School in

Kent, we were asked to look at Kemsley

School . This was conceived as a ‘wal l ’

of accommodat ion to prov ide a safe

and secure wor ld for the chi ldren. I t

is a s ingle storey structure in a l inear

conf igurat ion that occupies the top part

of the south fac ing s loping s i te which

terraces to form lower p lay courts. There

are f ive main e lements inc luding the

c lassroom wing separate ly expressed

as s imple t imber-c lad ‘boxes’ wi th in the

wal led enclosure.

After ga in ing p lanning consent, our ro le

was reduced to that of des ign consul tant

to a larger commercia l pract ice due

to the counci l ’s ex ist ing f ramework

agreement. Our contro l of the deta i l

des ign and the execut ion of the bui ld ing

was therefore l imi ted. The chal lenge

was therefore to design a school that

had a strong and robust form and

would st i l l funct ion and encompass our

archi tectura l ideas.

Cowpla in, Hampshire

1998

l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

q u e e n ’s i n c l o s u r e s c h o o l

Designed by Col in Stansf ie ld Smith, the

Queen’s Enclosure School l ies on the

southern edge of the last remnant in

Cowpla in of the ancient Forest of Bere.

Class rooms are occupying one of the

two bare l l vaul ted space, whi lst the other

compr ise hal l , staff and other anci l lary

spaces. The cont inuous g laz ing to the

c lass rooms offers f ine v iews in and out

of the adjacent woodland.

Fol lowing a reorganisat ion of the

Univers i ty, our br ie f has been to create

s ix new school centres. We have

based our designs on an archi tectura l

response to the heavy, monumenta l ,

earthbound language of the ex ist ing

Basi l Spence campus bui ld ings as one

of counterpoint- us ing l ightweight,

e legant, f loat ing e lements (meta l rather

than masonry) to create a compl imentary

language without recourse to past iche.

Sussex Univers i ty, Br ighton

2006

-

l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

c o n t r a c t

s u s s e x u n i v e r s i t y

glasgow

2008l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

m e r r y l e e s c h o o l , g l a s g o w

Our design v is ion represents an edu-

cat ional aspi rat ion for the 21st century

that is conceived as a set of gener ic

pr inc ip les: imagined as ‘wal led gar-

den’, i t nurtures an env i ronment that is

both a tool for teaching and learn ing a

susta inable ethos as wel l as creat ing an

archi tectura l form.

This idea of an enclosed educat ional

env i ronment is not new – schools such

as W inchester, Harrow, Eton, l ike the

col leges of Oxford and Cambr idge,

have succeeded in a col leg iate env i-

ronment that is overwhelming in the

message of educat ional authent ic i ty.

This is not about the pr iv i leged wor ld

of such places, rather the att i tude that

they engender, for they a l l offer beaut i fu l

env i ronments even i f the i r bui ld ings are

now technica l ly sdef ic ient . The chal lenge

new is to f ind a modern equiva lent that

is equal ly at t ract ive yet a lso funct ional .

Our overr id ing concept is about ‘enclo-

sure’ creat ing a safe p lace. I t secures

and protects offer ing a st imulat ing edu-

cat ional aura. Ever s ince the horror of

Dunblane, we can no longer expose our

chi ldren to the outs ide wor ld, but must

offer a safe env i ronment that is benign

and nurtur ing, not harsh and impr ison-

ing, so the analogy of a wal led garden

seems apt.

The designed form of th is enclosure

would contrast st rongly wi th a f lex ib le

arrangement of enclosed accommoda-

t ion. A contrast of formal and informal ,

order and play that would be re inforced

in the use of mater ia ls .

London Borough of Southwark

2008

l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

s o u t h w a r k v i c t o r i a n s c h o o l s

Central to the current programme of renewing schools across the UK is the careful and sustainable management of i ts exist ing bui ld ing stock – the Victor ian school remains a dominant and last ing typology that has become integral to the country ’s histor ical and cul tural her i tage. However, the cont inued use of these out-of-date school bui ld ings is hinder ing the successful del ivery of today’s nat ional curr iculum.

The object ive of the study is to ident i fy the exist ing problems and qual i t ies that

are common to Victor ian schools, and to explore potent ia l design solut ions that could unlock the latent potent ia l of these ant iquated structures.

Canterbury

2001

l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

k i n g s m e a d s c h o o l

London Borough of Lewisham

2008

l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

l e w i s h a m s c h o o l s

John Pardey Archi tects, work ing

a longside HKR Archi tects are Cl ient

Design Advisers for the London Borough

of Lewisham on the i r £225 mi l l ion BSF

programme. The team are ass ist ing

the Borough in p lanning and designing

a secondary school estate f i t for the

21st Century. They have completed

masterplans to strategic business case

stage for s ix secondary school s i tes,

and developed the largest school s i te –

Sedgehi l l – to RIBA Stage C. HKR are

prov id ing consul tancy on the mark ing of

the b ids f rom consort ia.

As a resul t of th is work Partnerships for

Schools have asked to prepare nat ional

guidance for the preparat ion of school

masterp lans.

s o u t h b a d d e s l e y s c h o o l ‘ e c o c l a s s r o o m ’

This modest c lassroom block for a pr imary school in Hampshire, was designed as a learning resource to demonstrate a greater awareness of ecological bui ld ing pract ice.

From the outset, the bui ld ings form has been dr iven by the need to reduce the area of bui l t envelope, reducing the use of mater ia ls in i ts construct ion, and energy in use. The or ientat ion of the centre is a response to the s i te and a desire for a c lear v isual l ink to the al l weather play areas adjacent to the bui ld ing.

The basic premise has been to adopt a fabr ic f i rst approach, wi th an emphasis on creat ing a highly in¬sulated, natural ly dayl i t , a i r t ight bui ld ing wi th a con¬trol led vent i lat ion strategy based on Passive house pr inciples. Wal ls are bui l t in t imber f rame inf i l led wi th Hemcrete for thermal mass and inert ia, and clad in sweet chestnut.

The bui ld ing is predominant ly l i t v ia natural dayl ight , wi th large glazed windows to the south and east facades, together wi th day- l ight ing tubes which direct dayl ight through the roof to i l luminate the rear wal l of the c lassroom. Low energy l ight f i t t ings on dayl ight sensors are also provided.

An external covered play space provides an area for outdoor play dur ing inclement weather. This area is enclosed by low-level t imber fencing.

New Forest

2012l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

borden, hampshire

2001l o c a t i o n

c om p l e t i o n

w o o d l e a s c h o o l

Woodlea school was designed by Col in

Stansf ie ld Smith and s i ts below an ieron

age fort and a woodland.

An organic p lan and t imber construct ion.

wi th outdoor decks for ch i ldren’s p lay,

breaks new ground in school design to

create an engaging, human envi ronment

for learn ing.

F i rs t Pr ize : Bui ld ing Centre Trust

nat ional ' Ideas for l iv ing, a housing

demonstrat ion pro ject compet i t ion' .

1988

Jo int Premier Pr ize : Memor ia l

Advisory Bureau nat ional 'Phoenix

Awards for the design of a cemetery

for commemorat ion af ter cremat ion

compet i t ion' 1988

F i rs t Pr ize : Bi rmingham City

internat ional des ign compet i t ion for the

design of a 700 pupi l inner c i ty jun ior

school and community centre wi th

anci l lary housing. 1989

Second Pr ize : Chichester Distr ict

Counci l /RIBA nat ional des ign

compet i t ion for a 900 space mult i -storey

car park wi th in a conservat ion area.

1989

Second Pr ize : EEC Energy Research

Group 'Work ing in the Ci ty' . European

archi tectura l ideas compet i t ion for a

design of a passive-energy urban off ice

prototype in London. 1989

Honourab le Ment ion: Comune di

Genova internat ional compet i t ion to

redesign the area of P iazza Dante,

Genoa, I ta ly. 1990

High ly Commended: RIBA/Country L i fe

nat ional des ign compet i t ion for a new

v is i tors centre at the Dulwich Picture

Gal lery. 1990

Honourab le Ment ion: Internat ional

compet i t ion for the design of a Chamber

Theatre and Arts Centre, Moscow. 1990

Th i rd Pr ize : RIAS/Scott ish Sports

Counci l hote l swimming pool

compet i t ion. 1992

Second Pr ize : Blanc de Bierges Street

furn i ture design compet i t ion. 1992

Runner up: Kent County Counci l /RIBA

nat ional des ign compet i t ion for an inf i l l

s i te in Rochester town centre. 1992

F i rs t Pr ize : Nat ional compet i t ion for the

design of a new Garden of Remembrance

at Kensal Green cemetery, London. 1993

Honourab le Ment ion: Europan

internat ional compet i t ion for medium

densi ty housing in the suburbs of

Stockholm, Sweden. 1994

Commended: Centro/RIBA nat ional

des ign compet i t ion for a new ci ty centre

bus stat ion, Walsa l l , W. Midlands. 1995

Runner up: Europan internat ional

housing compet i t ion at Pr iesth i l l ,

Glasgow. 1996

F i rs t Pr ize : RIBA susta inable school

compet i t ion in Canterbury. 2001

RIBA Southern Reg ion Cha i rman’s

Award 2001

F i rs t Pr ize : Galvanisers Associat ion

Award 2004

Chi l te rn ’s Des ign Award 2004

Runner up: The Pr ime Min ister ’s Best

Publ ic Bui ld ing Award 2005

Second Pr ize : Chr istchurch Borough

Counci l / RIBA compet i t ion for a new

cl i f f - top cafe 2005

F ina l is t : Grand Designs Magazine

Awards for Best New House in Br i ta in

2006Grand Des igns Magaz ine Award for Best Remodel led House in Br i ta in Award 2006

Shor t l i s ted: RIBA Bookshops 2005

Internat ional Book Award: for John

Pardey’s book ‘Utzon: Two Houses on

Majorca’ . 2006

F i rs t Pr ize : Southwark Counci l /

Internat ional des ign compet i t ion for a

new ‘School for the Future’ 2007

Shor t l i s ted: RIBA Bookshops 2007

Internat ional Book Award: for John

Pardey’s book ‘Louis iana and Beyond –

The work of V i lhe lm Wohlert ’ . 2007

F ina l is t : Grand Designs Magazine

Awards for Best New House in Br i ta in

2009RIBA Southern Reg ion Award 2009

High ly Commended: RIBA / Rother

Distr ict Counci l ’s Seafront shel ters +

k iosk compet i t ion. 2009

Shor t l i s ted: RIBA St i r l ing Pr ize Stephen

Lawrence Award 2009

RIBA Southern Reg ion Award 2011

Shor t l i s ted: RIBA Manser Medal 2011

Shor t l i s ted: RIBA Downland Pr ize 2011

a w a r d s

RIBA Southern Reg ion Award 2012

Shor t l i s ted: 2012 Internat ional Design + Archi tect

Awards 2012

RIBA Welsh Reg ion Award 2012

Winner : Nat ional Bui ld ing Contro l Award 2013

H igh ly Commended: The Wood Awards 2013

Gold Meda l for Arch i tecture in Wales 2013