Kallangur State School wins a prestigious Learning Environment Queensland Award in 2024

Written By Louise Crozier

The new General Learning Area building at Kallangur State School – designed by Giarola Architects – was the only public school project to win an LEAQ award this year.

Our Kallangur State School GLA Building collected the top prize in its category at the 2024 Learning Environments Australasia – Queensland Chapter Awards, when it was announced as the best New Building/s or Facility/s – Small (under $10M).

As a result, the project has been put forward for the 2025 Learning Environments Australasia Design (LEAD) Awards, which will be announced in Brisbane at the 2025 Annual Regional Conference Awards Dinner on 8 May 2025. 

The design prioritises inclusive education in a public school setting, and challenges the typical boundaries of indoor and outdoor teaching spaces by opening all classrooms to expand into courtyards, internal walkways and outdoor learning areas.

The jury commended Giarola Architects for creating a facility that: “delivers on its ethos revolving around ‘a moral’ imperative to try and provide its students and real chance to have a happy and successful life.”

In their citation, the jury wrote:

“Informal teaching and learning experiences are achieved in dissolved indoor-outdoor spaces. Inclusive learning environments connect classrooms, generous circulation, breakout, play and courtyards. The generosity of the circulation space provides flexibility, whilst a simple façade angled gesture improved shaded play opportunity. Outdoor teaching is promoted by providing a range of spaces with differing qualities and opportunities for diverse student needs.”

Covered outdoor learning area as an expansion to general learning areas.

Covered outdoor learning area as an expansion to general learning areas. Photographer: Cam Murchison Photography.

One of the most subtle design moves – which delivers a significant impact – is the angled southern glazed façades, which are rotated 15 degrees from the perpendicular walls, to exclude direct sunlight from classrooms during school hours.

 This allows for passive sun shading without the need for additional infrastructure.

This simple change to the building’s form helps to optimise and maximise functional spaces internally, while creating a simplified structure which conformed with the construction brief and delivered substantial cost savings, both:

  • during construction – by avoiding the need for blinds, sun shading and/or tinting; and

  • during ongoing operation – by reducing the school’s energy bill by minimising HVAC cooling loads.

Street view showcasing the angled glazed facade

Street view showcasing the angled glazed facade. Photographer: Cam Murchison Photography.

This project owes much of its success to our collaboration with key stakeholders from the Department of Education and the school itself, who participated in our Signature Visioning Process workshops during the project initiation phase.

Sharon Butterworth, Business Manager at Kallangur State School, described how our team respectfully challenged the original brief – and listened to the school’s wishes and requirements – before delivering a new building that exceeded their vision for the project.

She said:  

“This project represents a significant undertaking by the entire school community-from the leadership team to teachers and support staff, and also for students and their families, and it demonstrates that the move to independent status in 2016 and the establishment of a School Council-which sets our strategic direction and strengthens local decision making-was a highly beneficial one for our local community.”

We are delighted with this award, which recognises our ongoing efforts to ensure that all students – regardless of their location or ability – enjoy access to high-quality educational environments, which foster their love of learning and increase their chances of future success

Would you like to partner with us to deliver your next project?

Giarola Architects has developed extensive expertise in the design and delivery of inclusive and innovative education settings for more than 30 years.

Thanks to our long-standing collaboration with specialist school clients – including Language Disorder Australia and Autism Queensland – we’ve developed and refined our unique skills around the delivery of educational environments that allow all students of all abilities to flourish academically and socially. 

If you’d like to talk to us about how you can enhance inclusivity at your school, we invite you to explore our services, including:

  • Our Inclusive Education Evaluation service (email us here to find out more)

  • Our Signature Vision Process (email us here to find out more)

Or call our studio on 07 3878 3330 to find out more about how we can collaborate to bring your vision to life.

Featured project:

Kallangur SS – GLA Building

 
Louise Crozier http://louisecrozier.com/
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