Oran Park Public School Innovation in Education

Sydney’s South West Growth Centre is planned to accommodate around 110,000 new homes in the next 30 or so years. Recent and ongoing house and land releases in the Oran Park area have provided demand for education facilities. Commissioned in response to this demand, NBRSARCHITECTURE has designed Oran Park Public School – a new Core 21 Primary School with Special Needs facilities. The new school was officially opened Wednesday 29th January 2014.

The site planning clearly communicates a sense of arrival and navigation. The entry portico defines destination and leads to a piazza courtyard which creates an atmosphere of security and belonging. Key navigation cues are employed to strengthen the idea of community. Shape, colour and orientation give identifiable makers to all parts of the campus.

“This school is a beautiful place where students can enjoy learning in an environment which is conducive to that [The school] will be the hub of the community”
Principal Donna Shevlin, 2014

The courtyard arrangement of buildings is designed to encourage school community, and acts as a central break out space from classrooms. It also provides the school with a functional civic heart, with all the key facilities located around a single courtyard.

Design Director Andrew Duffin along with Project Architect Ewan Saunders worked through contextual master plan options resolving the form and detail of a campus sitting on the rise of a hill and with respect to the environment and topography created learning spaces of shelter and challenge. The project was brought to fruition under the Directorship of Garry Hoddinett, ensuring that the early design ideas were carried through, with site architectural services completed by our architect Vivian Go.

The school features a range of modern facilities there are connected classrooms and state-of-the-art geothermal air conditioning”
Premier Barry O’Farrell, 2014

Close collaboration with the head of our Landscape studio, Andrew Leuchars, ensured that the softscape and hardscape created a dialogue with the building forms. The creation of outdoor learning spaces has provided an extension of the classroom, expanding the opportunity for educational opportunities. This has been achieved through special use gardens including herb and vegetables, bush tucker and sensory gardens, which incorporate raised beds in order to make them readily accessible for wheel chair users.

Early strategic planning through James Ward enabled the team from NBRSARCHITECTURE to set a goal of creating a stimulating learning space that would be environmentally responsive and contextually relevant. The detailed resolution has seen a clear articulation of that goal.