Ngunnawal people
ACT
The new Primary School Building at Canberra Grammar School provides the school with modern, high-quality, light-filled student learning spaces and staff administration offices. The design creates a new sense of identity for the Primary School and provides a welcoming reception space for students, staff and visitors to the school.
Responding to complex site constraints, the building sits comfortably in the landscape, drawing inspiration from the palette of brickwork and metal cladding which is featured throughout the school campus. The retention of two large eucalyptus trees defines the form of the building, with a continuous ribbon of brickwork providing a soft, textural response to the site and its surroundings, whilst the dynamic northern facade and covered spaces holds a respectful dialogue with its adjacent buildings.
DJAS’s new building at Canberra Grammar School offers modern classrooms, flexible learning spaces, and administrative facilities, all thoughtfully integrated around preserved gumtrees. A curved brick façade provides continuity with the campus and frames the retention existing gumtrees. Open verandas allow external clear circulation. Internally, light-filled spaces support adaptable teaching. The project reorders the site with improved landscaping and safer drop-off zones. Balancing the existing established campus and progress, the design reflects evolving needs and expectations of contemporary educational environments.
The new building has transformed the engagement with the School by its community, students, staff and parents. It provides a statement of excellence which aligns with the strategic direction of the School. It provides exceptional facilities for students, creating enhanced learning opportunities and outcomes, providing for a seamless educational experience, both within and outside the classrooms. The spaces are beautifully designed, and where students want to be, increasing their joy of learning. For the first time in decades the Primary School has a building befitting the entrance to a School that proudly aims to produce students “Ready for the World”.
Scott Hodgson, Design Architect
Ben Pierce, Project Architect
Adam Litherland, Project Architect
Sellick Construction, Structural Engineer
Switched On, Electrical Consultant
CCS Group, Mechanical Consultant
Oneill & Brown Plumbing, Hydraulic Consultant
Harris Hobbs Landscapes, Landscape Consultant
CBS Building Surveyors, Building Surveyor
ACOR, Acoustic Consultant
Surface Design, ESD Consultant