Learning Street, Holden Lane Primary School

The Challenge

Finding space for students to meet or gather outside of the classroom in schools is invaluable. Providing a bespoke and considered design, to fully utilise the ‘space’ and to create a suitable learning environment, helps teachers to improve one-to-one interaction and small group workshops with their students.

Where ‘space’ finding can often be a challenge for many primary schools, Holden Lane was in the enviable position of having a generous ‘Learning Street’ (initially a massively oversized circulation space), which was screaming “opportunity”. The City Council and school recognised the opportunity and we were appointed to project manage the refurbishment and fit out of the Learning Street.

Architects, Pinnegar Hayward Design, were commissioned to develop a design solution in which the main brief was simple; the finished solution must have the ‘WOW’ factor.

In addition to being aesthetically amazing, the fit out needed to deliver functionality and accordingly, the teaching staff needed a greater understanding of the equipment and space provisions than two dimensional drawings were able to provide.

Via the utilisation of three dimensional virtual reality googles, the school was able to ‘walk’ the street prior to construction and to proactively contribute to and be confident with the design solution.