BUILDING THE FUTURE OF SIERRA LEONE
Working with Save the Children, Article 25 and Buro Happold, this school prototype for Sierra Leone was devised with the local community.
The design is a modular system of floor, walls and roof on a completely flexible plan. It uses local bush-sticks, standard-sized timber planks and sheet tin for the roof, and can be reconfigured for Sierra Leone’s variable student demographic.
The aesthetic response to climatic and economic restraints has produced a new vernacular: ‘architecture without architects’.
There is widespread acceptance of the design, enabling teachers to circulate in classrooms that are light and naturally ventilated, offering better security and supervision. It has been an exciting and ambitious humanitarian undertaking to help improve education in one of the world’s poorest countries.
The design is being funded by Foster + Partners and construction is being financed by the Foster family.
The following documentary film was provided and funded by The Bank, to view it please click here.
The architectural model and the film are currently being displayed as part of the Summer Exhibition at The Royal Academy.
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