Design for learning

In recent years, considerable evidence has emerged that the school environment can have a major impact on the learning experiences of pupils. Children taught in spacious, comfortable rooms do better than those stuck in decaying, drab ones - and their teachers are happier, too.

"It is accepted in the business world that the workplace affects productivity," says Sophia Parker, development manager for learning at the Design Council, "but people [have previously] always expected schools to be ugly, unwelcoming places with chipped paint and wobbly chairs."

However, it seems that this is no longer the case: "That attitude is changing as more people realise that improved environments impact on children's learning," explains Ms Parker.

This shift in perspective is being further encouraged by government investment in school design. A rise in funding to £5 billion in 2005-06 was promised in March this year by the minister of state for school standards, David Miliband, to continue the transformation of school buildings. And initiatives such as the £10 million Classrooms of the Future project and the development of the Exemplar Project (which will provide 12 blueprints for good primary and secondary school design) are helping, too.

Some schools have already been converted to the delights of clever design. Brindishe School in Lewisham, London, benefits from an open plan design first conceived in the mid-1970s. At Brindishe, the school environment is used to help encourage pupils to be self-reliant.

"They have a form base, but the whole school is completely open plan and children are encouraged, once their tasks are assigned, to go into the central shared area and work through their project," explains Brindishe's headteacher, Vicki Paterson. "It isn't noisy and the behaviour of the children is exemplary because they understand the responsibilities of being allowed more freedom."

The visibility that this layout provides encourages calmer behaviour, says Ms Paterson. But she acknowledges that some new teachers find it difficult to get used to: "It can feel like being in a goldfish bowl at first," she admits.

Meanwhile, at the recently-opened Hampden Gurney Church of England Primary School in Westminster, space is used in a different way. The school is situated in a busy urban area with little outside space, and its design is based on the concept of a 'vertical school'. The 240 pupils are spread over four floors, with decking providing a play area on each level. The roof is landscaped to provide a canopied external space for lessons.

Natural light is another key feature of the school's design: the building, which faces a busy main road into central London, is glass-fronted, making the most of daylight and also ensuring that the school and its inhabitants aren't shut off from the community.

"The feeling is bright and spacious," says Year 6 teacher Peter Francis. He believes that the pleasant learning environment has a positive impact on pupils' attitudes to school: "The children really like it," he says. "They are enthusiastic about their school."

Last year, the school was nominated for the Stirling Prize for architecture.

Most schools don't have the option of making major structural or design changes unless the building is being refurbished. But Kings Avenue School in Lambeth, south London, had just this opportunity - it received an injection of capital when the local authority decided to rationalise its surplus places by merging three schools. At the same time, the school was made a centre of excellence for visually-impaired children, so good design was imperative.

Many of the new design features have benefited all pupils at the school. For example, colour co-ordination has been used to make it easier for those with impaired sight to locate different areas of the school but has also transformed the site into a smart, colourful place for all the pupils. And a wide yellow line down the middle of every corridor which acts primarily as a guide for those with sight difficulties has also encouraged children to walk in a straight, orderly line.

Colour also predominates in the school grounds, where features include coloured surfaces and large areas marked up with games. Every groundfloor classroom also has a clearly marked external area leading directly from it. And the fencing around the school is colourful, too, softening the 'fortress' look that many schools have in this security-conscious age.

While the refurbishment at Kings Avenue School was the result of major investment, other schools have made improvements on a much tighter budget. At Brindishe School, for example, colour was used on a smaller scale to brighten up the environment when parents came in and painted the children's toilets with sky-blue paint. Colourful prints have also been added, along with mirrors and plants. Improvements such as these can really help develop a more positive attitude towards school among pupils.

As Kings Avenue's assistant headteacher Graham Warr emphasises, other simple, small-scale changes can also make the time they spend in class more pleasant: "We [have made] drinking water available in every classroom so pupils can have drinks when they need them," he explains.

Adequate ventilation, well-planned seating arrangements and simple, effective displays that avoid over-stimulating children also all help make pupils happier, more comfortable and more focused at school - and can have a positive impact on learning as a result.

Improving your classroom

• develop an identity for your classroom by introducing a colour scheme that runs throughout the room and into the corridor outside
• create a quiet corner with soft seats or cushions for pupils to be calm in
• consider fitting blinds to block out strong sunlight and distractions
• avoid clutter by allocating each pupil a drawer for their belongings
• ensure that displays are clear and simple and situated at child level
• make sure that children are comfortable during lessons by providing access to drinking water and monitoring ventilation and the room temperature
• improve the air quality and pupils' concentration levels by introducing carbon dioxide-reducing houseplants such as yucca plants or peace lilies

Further information

For lesson plans on school design, visit the School Works website at www.school-works.org

This content was published in July 2003 and may not reflect current policy