This weekend sees the annual Open House event take place in London. All over the city, buildings are opening up their (often closed) doors to the general public; offering detailed peeks inside and guided tours around some of the best-designed spaces of recent years. Amongst these is our Civic Trust Awards Commended Bow School, well worth a visit if you are a fan of education buildings which are cleverly and beautifully designed to work for and inspire the people who use them.
The 9 form-entry secondary school, delivered with Bouygues and for London Borough Tower Hamlets, accommodates about 1600 pupils, Boys and Girls, on a challenging site in Bromley-by Bow, East London. The design makes the best of its site, between the A12 and the Limehouse Cut, and the particular aspirations of the School.
Its three linked buildings shelter the landscaped grounds from the roads and maximise views. The Main Block to the north contains the reception, with nearly all the teaching areas, facilities for a large Sixth Form and ancillary functions. The width of the building allows three rooftop MUGAs, with light being brought down into the centre of the plan by two north-lit atria, as well as a flexible Assembly Hall and a dedicated Dining Pavilion.
The school is open Saturday 19th September for 3 tours; 10.10am, 11.15 am and 12.15pm.