Froebel Early Learning Centre

Steffen Welsch Architects worked with the not-for-profit Froebel Australia to deliver Froebel's first early learning centre and kindergarten in Melbourne. The centre shares its North Fitzroy site with partner organisation Deutsche Schule Melbourne, the German-English bilingual school in inner Melbourne, and provides childcare for 66 children aged from six weeks to five years.

The brief asked the practice to repurpose former school buildings into an engaging learning environment for young children and their educators, while also creating a communal hub for the German-Australian community. The response centres on a 'rooms within rooms' idea, giving the centre a range of intimate nooks and flexible spaces for play, reading and art. Alongside the playful touches, which include a play pod and a racing track, the design solves the practical demands of running a busy centre, with a teaching kitchen for food education, generous storage and durable, low-toxic materials.

Thermal performance was improved through considered internal planning, retrofitted insulation and new double-glazed doors and windows. Sustainability carries through to the landscape. The garden, designed by Christina Silk of Silk Consulting Landscape Architects with Alexandra Gaunt of Lightbox 3D, includes a kitchen garden, a shared entry with the Deutsche Schule to encourage meeting and mingling, and a giant slide running from the first floor straight into the playground. Purpose-built areas support educator training for the Stiftung Haus der kleinen Forscher 'Little Scientists' programme.

The project was named Winner, Renovation/Modernisation in the 2015 Educational Facilities Awards of the Council of Educational Facilities Planners International (CEFPI), and received a Commendation for Renovation/Modernisation in the 2015 CEFPI Victorian Chapter Awards.

Architect: Steffen Welsch Architects. Photography: Shannon McGrath. Landscape: Silk Consulting Landscape Architects with Lightbox 3D.