All new St Crispin’s
A beautifully designed school has been created in Burdiehouse
A NEW ST CRISPIN’S school has just opened to pupils and staff in Burdiehouse. The school has been designed by The City of Edinburgh Council completely in house. Soft, gentle colours are used throughout - a far cry from the primary colours used in schools in the past - and are designed to be calming for the pupils, many of whom are on the autistic spectrum.
The council's interior designer, Lesley McMillan, delighted in telling us all about the school with its nature theme. Even the roof of this new building is covered in wildflowers. There are individual outside areas for each wing of the school as well as a communal play area for all the pupils who are aged four to 18.
She devised a new system enabling all pupils to hang artwork on the classroom walls using a "Velcro receptive" pin boards on the walls, making sure that the school will be maintained in the pristine condition it is delivered.
Signage is important at St Crispin's as children with autism learn to exchange single pictures for the item or activity they want. This Picture Exchange Communication System ensures that everyone has their own sign which can be put up outside any room - or the new pool - to show where they are in the building. The school design also incorporates signage by Edinburgh based Lucy Richards, Creative Director at StudioLR on Breadalbane
Street, who created the Any Disability signs which are intended to encourage awareness of people with invisible disabilities.
Lesley said: “This school has been a particularly fulfilling project with all the design work being conducted “in house” at the council. I have loved contributing the interior design to this beautiful architectural space.
The wild flower roof and engagement with the school community have inspired the wayfinding, colours and finishes, a biophilic environment to create peaceful welcoming school, with pilot designs informing furniture selection and design to support learning and wellbeing for all, I really look forward to seeing the children and young people enjoying it once they have settled in.”
She also mentioned the colour-coded panels which denote each classroom area, with a laser cut plywood design applied to the internal walls. The design was created in collaboration with pupils and teachers who drew what they saw in nature outside the old school. The artwork was then translated into the final design by Emily Hogarth the Edinburgh based artist.
Emily said: “I love working on jobs that improve spaces for children, quite frankly, I worked on the Sick Kids
Hospital, and getting to work on this school with children who as you know have extra needs and actually sometimes get overlooked in society, it's nice to be able to make sure their spaces are the best they can be. To be a little a little part of that kind of process is a rewarding job. I would say for me as an illustrator.”
Headteacher, Rhoda MacDougall, said: "I don't want to be disrespectful to the old building because there are people who have had their entire careers here or their child's gone through every year of education here.This building has served a lot of children and families and staff and people are very affectionate about it.
"But the new school has sweeping wide corridors, soundproofing, beautiful artwork on the walls and it is all so carefully designed within the idea of the woodland and the new conservation area that we are moving into. The entire building just looks stunning. It looks brand new, but also looks as though it belongs in the environment. The architect has been so accommodating and has listened to what our children and young people need. Everything in an environment can be a barrier or a support to our pupils and the old building became a huge barrier to learning and having an inclusive life.”