KINGSWAY PARK SECONDARY SCHOOL

Kingsway Park

As pupils enter secondary school they are looking to reestablish themselves as separate from their junior school personas.

As such the focus of outdoor spaces tends to be that of a sports facility, with perhaps an element of that more 'grown up' environment of formality and straight lines.

Playfulness with all its broader connotations and benefits may have to take a back seat.

At Kingsway Park on an area of trampled muddy grass to the back of the sports hall we sought to subtly challenge this.

The initial request was to create something resembling an assault course as an addition to the excellent sports facilities the school has to offer. And certainly assault course elements were prevalent in the design and its subsequent use. Raised swing bars, balance beams and plenty of options for falling off things.

However this was also an opportunity to create a more versatile environment that encourages broader activities.

Raised oak platforms and walkways surrounded by long grass and birch woods.

Undulating mounds crossed by tree trunks and a curving fluid series of intersecting spaces.

The students now had an area as an alternative to the traditional high-school tarmac and bike sheds.

Somewhere less rigid to hang-out, see and be seen, and take a break from all the corridors, classrooms and bustle.