Vardheia school

Vardheia is a secondary school with an associated gymnastics and sports hall, designed for 450 pupils and 54 employees. The construction started in the autumn of 2019 after an initial interaction phase with both the client and contractor. The school was finished and ready for first day of school in August 2021.
The site is in a landscape typical of Jæren in Time municipality. The school's location on the site attempts to preserve as much of the landscape as possible, while at the same time creating several outdoor areas with different qualities. The schoolyard is car-free and encircles the building.
The main entrance area is retracted and helps in creating a clear distinction, regarding mobility, for the safety of the many vulnerable road users.
The school's functions are organized in wings around an amphitheater, which acts as the heart of the building. All functions are designed to optimize the learning process and are accessible to all potential users.
Instead of being organized as traditional classrooms, the learning areas are split up into areas with different qualities to help provide the best platform for learning.
This was one of the main reasons as to why we won the design competition in 2018.
Several of the school's facilities are also made available to the local community after the school's closing time.
The school is certified as BREEAM NOR Very Good, both for the design phase and in use. During the process, this became an important tool to ensure sustainable decisions from start to finish. The entire design team participated in a two-day BRREAM course before the design process started.

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