living, working and learning in the productive city

The masterplan: the 'Assembled City'

The master plan the design team developed bears the motto 'Ville assemblee' or 'Assembled City' and embraces the blending of living, working and learning. The most important aspect of the master plan is the far-reaching principle that (almost) all programmes and activities are visible and tangible in the street. Buildings for living, learning and working literally stand side by side. Stacking and functional separation, as is usual in the modern city, have largely been avoided.

The work on the various buildings has been divided between the four architectural firms. KSA is responsible for the new school buildings (E1, E2, E3 and E4), the fitting out of two floors of the existing industrial building 'Batiment A' for workshops for the school, a residential tower (T2) on top of the main secondary school building (E2) and a new mixed-use building for the housing association 'de Anderlechtse Haard' or 'Foyer Anderlechtois' 'FA' (W3) with social restaurant, offices, workshops underground archives and warehouses which are accessed via the car park. The FA spaces are partly located in the new accommodation and partly neighbouring residential building S3, designed by NoA architects.

The work on the various buildings has been divided between the four architectural firms. KSA is responsible for the new school buildings (E1, E2, E3 and E4), the fitting out of two floors of the existing industrial building 'Batiment A' for workshops for the school, a residential tower (T2) on top of the main secondary school building (E2) and a new mixed-use building for the housing association 'de Anderlechtse Haard' or 'Foyer Anderlechtois' 'FA' (W3) with social restaurant, offices, workshops underground archives and warehouses which are accessed via the car park. The FA spaces are partly located in the new accommodation and partly neighbouring residential building S3, designed by NoA architects.

Squares, alleys, gardens and the 'expedition mews'

The layout of the new neighbourhood is largely shaped by the history and atmosphere of the place, with old factory buildings and an elevated railway line. In addition, various typological references from Rotterdam and London played a role, such as the typical post-war Rotterdam 'expedition courtyards' and the London 'mews' from the 19th and 20th centuries. These informal urban spaces 'in the second row' are successful examples of mixing living and working in an urban context and serve as examples for the design of the 'expedition mews', the spatial carrier of the new neighbourhood. This lively space with room for both work traffic and pedestrians connects the various parts of the plan.

The new neighbourhood is open and permeable and consists of squares, gardens and roads and very different buildings. Maximum accessibility for soft traffic flows is a priority. Working, living, learning and relaxing go hand in hand in the design. There are various facilities such as cafés and sports facilities, including a social restaurant and a climbing hall. In addition, the school library and gymnasium are accessible to the district outside school hours.

Ecole de Tous: a neighbourhood within a neighbourhood

The new school is conceived as an ensemble of buildings with different layouts, character and functions. The most eye-catching building (E1) has a central position between the most important outdoor spaces, the 'Expedition Mews', the 'Place de createurs' and the more intimate schoolyard 'Place de Tous'. The abstract red-brick volume houses a multifunctional sports hall on the ground floor and the primary school on the first floor. Buildings E3 and E4, connected to building E1 by a public passage, house the library, a large canteen and the 'maternelle', the kindergarten on the first floor. The roofs of the new school buildings are all laid out as playgrounds, with various covers, pergolas and planters.

On the other side of the Place de Tous, between the schoolyard and the urban Rue de Goujons, the sturdy secondary school building (E2) is the face of the school to the outside world. It contains a large number of classrooms, a multifunctional forum and the main entrance to the Ecole de Tous. The facades of the building owe a lot to the monumental existing factory building 'Batiment A', which will be partly reused as a residential building and partly as a school. An existing wall fragment will be integrated into the street façade, with several characteristic gates forming the main access to the school and square and the T2 residential tower resting on top of the school's shoulders.

Learning in the city, for everyone- Ecole de Tous

With its various existing and new buildings and its outdoor spaces on top of and between the buildings, the school is a microcosm, a built didactic model and a functional machine. As a pilot project for the new 'Ecole de Tous' concept, the school takes on an innovative role beyond didactic responsibilities. By sharing its facilities with the neighbourhood and opening its various courtyards and gardens outside school hours, it is a "school for all" in the most fundamental and inclusive way.