pennington junior school, lymington 188 pupils this large site is located within a residential area....
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SCHOOL S
LANDSC APE PRO G RA MME
Pennington Junior School, Lymington
188 pupilsThis large site is located within a residential area.
It is situated on an extensive campus which is shared with an infant and a secondary school.
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LANDSC APE PRO G RA MME
•Pupils and vehicles shared the same entrance
Initial exploration of the issues revealed concerns with existing access and circulation:
Vehicle
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• There was no link between the schools so a short cut across a muddy field had evolved• Parents and siblings waited outside classrooms which caused disruption to classes.
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LANDSC APE PRO G RA MME
There were also concerns over breaktime opportunities:
•The link between them was poor and difficult to supervise
•The main areas used at breaktimes were two tarmac playgrounds used primarily for sports and active play.
There was a lack of:-• creative, imaginative and social play spaces• shelter or shade
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It also became apparent that there were a number of underused areas and resources, including:
Store
Pool
Field
As well as spaces which were either poorly located or no go areas
Pond
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The strategy identified new opportunities for resolving these concerns.
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New pedestrian access
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A key factor was to improve access and circulation
• A new pedestrian entrance was proposed with clear separation between cars and people
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Pond
•As a social space for breaktime use.
•A welcoming meeting/waiting space for parents and pupils.
•As an outdoor classroom linked to the existing pond.
The sheltered, no go area was identified as an area that could be used for a variety of purposes:
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The space was redesigned and has changed from being an unwelcoming, unused place…
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• shelter at playtimes• shade in the summer• a tuck shop
• a pupil managed games store • quiet seating corners• a parents notice board
…to an attractive area that resolves several issues through one solution.
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Adventure play
The use of the existing quiet area, poorly located next to the football space, was also redefined:
It was changed to a seating and waiting area for use in conjunction with the proposed adventure play area
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LANDSC APE PRO G RA MME
The strategy also identified new uses for disused resources.
For instance…..
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The swimming pool space was remodelled to include an amphitheatre and the changing rooms refurbished into a drama/community room to provide:
•An outdoor-classroom and year group space for drama, assemblies etc.• A breaktime space for imaginative, creative and quieter play• An outdoor space for community use and events
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Joint woodland teaching resource
Path
Finally, opportunities for shared curriculum resources were identified and the need to improve the physical link between the Infant and Junior buildings
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New pedestrian access
Amphitheatre
Social space
Pond
Adventure play and seating area
Joint woodland teaching resource
Divide
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Path
The strategy for the whole site has provided the school with an important tool for : • Communicating • Planning • Prioritising • Fundraising
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The school explain how stepping back and taking a long term strategic view has helped them to bring lasting benefits:
‘Auditing the use of the whole site and consulting all the stakeholders has meant that we formulated an excellent long term strategic plan, that we were able to implement in a series of clearly defined phases.
‘To date, we have a colourful social and outside learning space alongside an established pond, an adventure playground and an amphitheatre built on the site of a disused swimming pool with converted changing rooms now refurbished to form a creative arts building. We are now well into phase 4 which is a change to the school entrance, hopefully through the school travel plan initiative. Without taking this approach, our vision, I know, would have been thwarted by my natural enthusiasm and impatience to start work without due foresight.’ Headteacher.