Prahran High School

Our mission is to foster curiosity, creativity and empathy in the students in our care in order to develop young leaders of character and purpose who can confidently embrace life’s challenges and make a positive impact in their world.

The campus provides a full range of generalist and specialist learning environments including a learning resources centre and performing arts studios at ground levels and a full-size gymnasium at rooftop level.

Rather than designing a straight-up-and-down building extending to the boundary on each side, the design team developed two ‘slipped and shifted’ planes around a the central light-filled atrium. By offsetting each level, the atrium evolves as it runs up through the building, exposing more spaces to natural light and providing unique learning spaces visible throughout the building – like a gallery of learning. Through use of glass and perforated screens through the central atrium, the design welcomes parents, students and visitors, directly exposing them to everything the school has to offer.

Surrounding this central space, across all levels, learning environments have been planned to promote movement, interdisciplinary collaboration, visual and physical connectivity. Specialist spaces have been distributed across the central levels, directly connected to agile learning studios, to create neighbourhoods which provide a wide range of spaces to support small, medium and large groups.

External terraces at the northern and southern ends of the building are also directly connected to the atrium and adjoining learning environments. Staff workspaces are distributed vertically and integrated with the key learning spaces. A series of broad bleachers and stairs at each end the main atrium promote continual and seamless movement between levels in addition to providing informal social and gathering spaces for students

• Deliver high quality indoor environment quality consistent with best practice design for the wellbeing of future students and staff with a key focus on good natural ventilation and daylighting strategies.
• Utilise best practice ESD initiatives to deliver cost effective outcomes suitable for the education sector.
• Deliver sustainability learning outcomes where possible.

The sustainability design response for the proposed development may be summarised as follows:

• Maximize occupant comfort and well-being
• Demonstrate a high-performance design standard in compliance with the VSBA BQSH (Building Quality Standards Handbook)
• Set a minimum energy performance for the whole building
• Exceed the BCA energy efficiency requirements
• Implement cost effective and pragmatic ESD solutions across the site
• Implement sustainable learning outcomes for students and staff

• 2019 Australian Institute of Architects Victorian Chapter Awards, Educational Architecture, Commendation
• 2019 VSBA Victorian School Design Awards, Best Project above $10M, Winner
• 2020 Learning Environments Australasia Awards, New Construction / Entire New Educational Facility, Commendation