Schools at Meadowbank Education and Employment Precinct (SMEEP)

Meadowbank Schools is a NSW government education facility that has been designed to be responsive, responsible, and adaptable to sustainability. The design takes into account various challenges, including building during Covid lockdown, protecting land and ecological systems, understanding the site and urban design, designing for energy efficiency and consumption, and addressing social issues. The design aims to be environmentally friendly and socially responsible while providing a quality education facility for students.

The design solution for the project involved collaboration with the Department of Education and School Infrastructure to establish DfMA guidelines. It also incorporated WSUD principles and stormwater features to celebrate sustainable water cycle, while meeting the EFSG requirements for 4-star Green Star equivalency. The design also included authentic engagement with Aboriginal people, culture, art, stories, and identity through collaboration with Balarinji and local indigenous artist Jasmine Seymore.

Meadowbank Schools has been developed to align with the Education SEPP Design Quality Principles and has undergone community engagement and user group sessions to deliver a building that exceeds minimum industry standards for universal design. The design has been elevated to design excellence, promoting better design processes and outcomes. Meadowbank Schools provides a safe and secure educational facility that fosters creativity, collaboration, and learning for students and the wider community. The design impact is one of promoting sustainability, environmental responsibility, and social inclusivity while providing a high-quality education facility that is adaptable to future changes in education pedagogy.

Site and accessibility: Schools play an important role in the local social infrastructure and it is vital that there was to be an inclusive and clear approach to access and engage with the community which is interwoven with the proposal. The building is therefore designed so that the community access occurs on the Ground and Lower Ground with direct access to the Communal Hall, Gymnasium and outdoor play areas. These areas have been placed at the forefront of the building gesturing towards the wider community. Collaboration: The design team worked in close proximity with Balarinji and local indigenous artist Jasmine Seymore to ensure that authentic engagement with Aboriginal people, culture, art, stories and identity was imbedded into the overall design concept. The library façade stretching over 240m in length covering approximately 1,500m² became canvas for Jasmine’s design which depicts the local fora and flora and tells the story of learning. Collaboration with Aboriginal people would continue until project handover with 147 Indigenous workers on the site during construction. The design looked to use locally sourced materials that would fabricated and installed onsite by local skill labour.