St. Paul’s School

St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert

ST. PAUL’S SCHOOL

Walters & Cohen Architects

AREA
9714 m²

YEAR
2020

PHOTOGRAPHS
Dennis Gilbert

CATEGORY
Elementary & Middle School

CONTRACTOR
Osborne

LANDSCAPE
Bradley-Hole Schoenaich Landscape

M&E ENGINEER
Max Fordham LLP

STRUCTURAL & CIVIL
AKT II

LOCATION
London, United Kingdom

FAÇADE CONSULTANT
Eckersley O'Callaghan

The school wanted to replace the 1960s CLASP buildings, which were nearing the end of their lifespan, with a new general teaching building fit for 21st-century education.

Their vision was for learning, discussion, and interaction to happen everywhere – not just in the classrooms and library – but they were not sure what this could look like.

St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert

Walters & Cohen worked with the school community to understand their ethos, and then expanded the brief to include breakout spaces, which are peppered around the school to encourage teamwork and collaboration.

At more than 9,000m2, the building includes a library, dining hall, kitchen, administrative offices, a chapel, hall, and 56 classrooms.

St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert

A generous triple-height space known as the Atrium is designed as a magnificent heart of the school: students stop by throughout the day for independent study and to meet friends. With views across the sports fields, it also makes a wonderful event space.

Connecting the site well was important. The building’s L-shape design links into buildings on either side, creating a ring of circulation on all levels, and encloses the re-landscaped central courtyard known as Founder’s Court.

St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert

The building provides an attractive impression of the school from the Thames path, and the location of the library was carefully chosen so that it looks across the river, making the most of this unique site and adding to the library’s calm and inspiring atmosphere.

Walters & Cohen also breathed new life into the lacklustre back-of-house north access road, transforming it into a pedestrian-priority route that provides a safer and more cheerful circulation between buildings, while allowing vehicles to meander slowly between the planters.

The breakout spaces, along with the Atrium and Founder’s Court, have all been an instant hit with the students, and exceed the client’s vision for learning beyond the classroom.

St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert

Externally, the building is clad in pre-cast concrete with warm tones to complement the surrounding buildings’ materiality.

A stepped and layered façade brings visual depth and a slender verticality to the otherwise long facades that can be viewed from a great distance.

St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert

Internal-facing facades are clad in aluminium, which captures reflections of the new trees and plants within the central courtyard.

The internal materials were selected to be robust, with timber panelling lining much of the circulation, and high-quality visual concrete is expressed throughout.

St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert
St. Paul’s School
© Dennis Gilbert

The building is filled with light and fresh air, achieved with the use of large roof lights and voids connecting the building’s multiple levels. Large floor-to-ceiling windows provide generous views out on all sides.


St. Paul’s School
Section
St. Paul’s School
Section


St. Paul’s School
East Elevation
St. Paul’s School
North Elevation


St. Paul’s School
Ground Floor Plan
St. Paul’s School
Second Floor Plan
St. Paul’s School
External Wall Detail