Site Plan showing entry and drop off from Ringwood Road.
Forest Park is a school that exemplifies Hampshire’s inclusive approach and puts people at the heart of the school and the local community; celebrating creativity, inspiration and delight. Located on the edge of the New Forest National Park, Forest Park Special School provides purpose-built accommodation for children with complex learning difficulties.
Hampshire’s belief, as a public practice, is that good design and intelligent place making inspires learning and attendance, and encourages a child’s sociability, well being and attainment.
View of external teaching areas, classrooms and hall.
Reception and waiting area.
Working closely with the headteacher and the school, the accommodation has been designed around courtyard spaces, a typology well suited to schools and a theme recurring in Hampshire’s recent work. The teaching spaces are well connected and generously day lit. In addition to the nine classrooms the school provides a nursery, a hall and a specialist hydrotherapy pool which are accessible for the wider community.
Key to the success of this project is how well it engages with its setting. The school’s building forms and materials take their cue from the vernacular buildings found in the New Forest, with large agrarian structures and an attention to the detail of brick and dark stained cladding providing a natural and simple palette for the school. The wider school landscape takes inspiration from the heathland that typifies so much of the New Forest.