Eileen O’Connor Centre Stage 1 | Allen Jack+Cottier Architects

The Eileen O’Connor Centre project developed from a limited design ideas competition for “a contemporary technology based research and learning centre” with staged implementation for the Catholic Education Office. The centre houses three streams of learning; Gifted Education, Special Education and English as a Second Language, for approximately 50 students up to year 12. The site is an existing school constructed in the late 60’s and located in Lewisham. The Stage One works comprised of alterations and additions to one wing of a three storey building to provide ‘Blended Learning’ Spaces, and the transformation of the existing veranda to form Meeting Spaces, with timber seats and work benches integrated into new glass windows to facilitate casual interaction and informal study. Replacing the existing brick partition walls with operable glazed walls allowed the Learning Spaces to accommodate different learning environments such as traditional classroom, group work and computer mediated activities. The transformation was significant despite minimal design actions and this ensured that a cost effective solution was able to be constructed and completed within the 8 week school holiday period of December 2011-January 2012.