St Bede’s Catholic College | SHAC

In its completed form St Bede’s Catholic College anchors the new suburb of Chisholm by establishing a real sense of place. St Bede’s established its first building built on an old turkey farm on Wonnarua land. Careful siting, planning, anticipation and foresight has allowed this project to fully realise the school as the heart of the community.  

A delivery timeline of over ten years ensued a complex development schedule with classrooms morphed into administration and library rooms as the school grew from its initial cohort. Simple repetitive building forms are deceptive in their innovation, sustainability and robustness. Careful consideration is given to prospect and refuge throughout the school. Welcoming arrival space, varied indoor and outdoor teaching spaces, nooks for breaktime and generous areas for play and discovery are all present.  

Simple details demonstrate knowledge of the particular requirements for this building type and a desire to innovate creates inspiring learning environments. Circulation runs through the middle of the buildings and provides additional learning spaces in the interstitial spaces whilst allowing heating and cooling to be controlled more effectively.