University of Cambridge Primary School, Junior Education Design Photos

University of Cambridge Primary School

Education Building on Eddington Avenue design by Marks Barfield Architects, England

21 May 2017

University of Cambridge Primary School Building News

Design: Marks Barfield Architects

A RIBA East Awards 2017 Winner

Location: Eddington Avenue, Cambridge, Southeast England, UK

University of Cambridge Primary School, Cambridgeshire

Jury Report

Considerable research went into the development of this primary school, taking best practice from across the globe on teaching methods since it is also a training school. It is an ambitious project and staff are clearly proud and delighted with the resultant building.

photo © Morley von Sternberg

The circular form of the school wraps around a central courtyard giving a clear sense of place on arrival as well as serving as an external assembly room that brings the whole school together. This sense of sharing across years and creating a school community is reinforced by the organisation and layout of the school.

photo © Morley von Sternberg

A library and art room with ‘shop window’ sits at the entrance and immediately sets the scene for making teaching and learning visible. This continues into the shared teaching streets, flooded with light, which are open to each classroom, allowing informal observation by researchers and training teachers of classroom activities.

Off each classroom are external teaching spaces facing either inwards towards the central court or outwards towards the larger playground. Larger outdoor teaching areas on the circular plan further supplement these and physically and visibly connect the inner courtyard with the outer playground and new woodlands.

photo © Morley von Sternberg

Close to the entrance are communal areas, including dining and assembly, which can also be used by the wider community out of hours. Dining encourages mixed year groupings and incorporates circulation through to classrooms and, facing southeast, focuses back onto the central courtyard. Throughout the building there is a clever doubling up of uses so that tight school space standards are exploited.

photo © Morley von Sternberg

The building is an open and fresh attempt to look at education and the resultant classrooms and spaces are admirable and clearly enjoyed by their occupants.

photo © Northwest Cambridge Development

University of Cambridge Primary School Design – Building Information

Architect practice: Marks Barfield Architects
Date of completion: September 2015
Client company name: University of Cambridge Primary School / Northwest Cambridge Development
Project city/town: Cambridge
Contract value: Confidential
Internal area: 3,818.00 m²
Cost per m²: Confidential
Contractor company name: Willmott Dixon

Consultants:
Structural Engineers: URS (now AECOM), Parmarbrook
Environmental / M&E Engineers: Briggs & Forester, Building Services Design, URS (now AECOM)
Quantity Surveyor / Cost Consultant: Gardiner & Theobald
Landscape Architects: Colour UDL
Acoustic Engineers: URS (now AECOM)
Artist: Ruth Proctor, Contemporary Arts Society
Furniture: Hampshire Council Architects
NEC Supervisor: Calfordseadon
Project Management: Turner & Townsend
CDM Coordinator: Faithful & Gould
Approved Building Inspector : 3C Shared Services Building Control (including Cambridge City Council)

Marks Barfield Architects

Awards: RIBA East Award

A RIBA East Awards 2017 Winner
University of Cambridge Primary School Building

Address: Eddington Avenue 0QZ, Cambridge CB3, England, United Kingdom
Phone: +44 1223 792440