Presentation School, Warrenmount

Converting a number of existing classrooms, PKA’s home economics room has state-of-the-art teaching facilities, including audio-visual infrastructure for the students to watch online cookery demonstrations. The new canteen can accommodate the entire school to have lunch in a single sitting and the cooking facilities are of full-restaurant standard, including bain-marie and chilled presentation units.  

With sofas, lounge chairs and an electric stove unit, the new recreation room provides a dedicated space for pupils to ‘chill-out’ before, after and between classes. This area is also intended to accommodate parent-teacher meetings, evening classes and social events.

Rachael Chidlow’s design sought to enliven the atmosphere of the teaching, canteen and recreation spaces: new roof-lights were inserted into the home economics classroom to provide natural light and ventilation; oak laminate flooring replaced the ubiquitous carpet and vinyl sheeting; a vibrant palette of colours and a range of distinctive light fittings were selected to give the spaces a relaxed and anti-institutional feel.

PKA was appointed in 2015, construction commenced in July 2016 and was completed for the start of the 2016 school year.