Darlington Education Village, North Yorkshire
- Client: Darlington Borough Council
- Principal designer: RyderHKS
- Principal engineer: Cundall
- Principal contractor: Kajima
- Contract value: £24 million
About the project
Darlington Education Village is pioneering: it is the UK's first wholly integrated and inclusive school, bringing together existing secondary, primary, nursery and special educational needs schools on one campus. Its generous facilities are open to other local schools and the wider community.
The 33-acre campus is made up of a series of linked buildings and, like a conventional village, all overlook a one-acre village green. The concept of streets and spaces and café-style dining defines the design, with a double-height internal street linking all facilities.
The 1,400 pupils enjoy a fully equipped sports centre, a-25 metre pool, eight football pitches and a cricket square. There are music rooms, dance and drama studios and a large performance hall. Facilities for disabled children and those with special educational needs include music therapy spaces, a multi-sensory room, a soft play area and a hydrotherapy pool. Classroom sizes have been increased to accommodate wheelchairs.
Particular attention has been paid to sustainability. Features such as energy-producing photovoltaic panels, a wind turbine, grey water collection, two wildlife ponds and a computerised energy management system can also be used as teaching aids.
The judges said: "Making the case for every stage of school education on a single site".