De Kaap School school + preschool – Complete design with playable border between preschool and primary school
Project information
Year: 2016
Status: Construction Completed
Location: Amsterdam centrum, The Netherlands
Surface: 910 m2
Client: STAIJ
Team: Renet Korthals Altes
Description
Courtyard school and preschool in Amsterdam East, children demanded to be able to play with their siblings at the preschool, a fence on a small hill, creates a safe one way playable border. Part of Amsterdam Greening schoolyards program.
Challenge
Enclosed playground, noise problems for surrounding neighbours. Rainwater detention to be solved within schoolyard. Toddlers and primary school share space.
Process
Consultation of neighbours, co-designing with children: ‘I want to play with my sister from nursery, but there is a fence between us’.
Result
Rainwater detention playable wadi. Combined fence/hill , ensuring nursery children cannot climb over it, but their older siblings can step over. We have learned to enclose planting more, to plant larger shrubs, to secure a good maintenance party and to avoid grass-hills in intensively used schoolyards, even though schools demand these.