Location: Hanover
Competition: 1. Prize 2011
Client : Region Hanover
Constriction Period: since 2016
Work Phases: 1–9
Gross Floor Area: 7.800 m²
Learning Center for Social and Emotional Development
The school is the largest learning center for social and emotional development in Lower Saxony. The design for the new construction is a three-storey building that is dominated by glass and air inside thus becoming light and clear.
Two covered atria and a green inner courtyard ensure a friendly and light atmosphere. Large windows let the light flood the rooms and allow for calming outlooks into the green surrounding. Transparent, glazed staircases simplify the orientation. Located on the same property as the existing learning center, it marks the prominent and calm scenery with the large plane trees behind – without affecting the tree population.
The three-storey and 110 meter long school building also marks the transition between the broad nature and the artificial schoolyard. By its independent position on the property it narrows the way in along the street thus presenting a gate-like entrance situation. In combination with the existing trees the ensemble presents a modern learning campus with a clear urban link and own identity.
The intertwined spatial structure creates a comfortable atmosphere. Following the contrast of “entirety and personal support”, “community and individual”, “agora and cella”, “hard shell and soft core”, the school demonstrates strength and liability to the outside, yet it is precise and light inside. Nature and landscape are incorporated into the building design as a pedagogically concept.