Waingels College Woodley, UK

The design of Waingels College is innovative in both form and construction. Its driving concept is of the school as a community and its buildings as a village of learning spaces.

Four separate buildings frame the heart of the school, a village green. Three of these are pastoral bases or learning communities, while the fourth houses large, shared, communal spaces such as the assembly and dining halls. Each base has a smaller heart space for its own community – a large staircase that can be used as a forum for the pupils. Avoiding long dark corridors in favour of naturally-lit, interconnected breakout areas, spaces are open and flexible, encouraging cross-curricular interaction.