We really like our new building and students have also embraced it well. It is a pleasure to see that teachers have found learning opportunities outside of the classrooms as well, as the school offers excellent conditions for this. The students' favorite spot is the open library, where comfortable seating encourages group discussions. Teachers, on the other hand, enjoy the cosy teachers' room.
The wooden materials create a warm and inviting atmosphere, helping us feel more relaxed in the building. The spaces are very pleasant, designed with natural and earthy colors, such as dark green and rust – everything is in harmony. It is surprising that, although we are located next to a busy road, the noise does not enter the building. The same goes for classrooms – the sound from the corridor does not interfrere with lessons.
Sirje Kautsaar, Principal of Rae High School
Rae Secondary School and the sports building are located in the centre of Jüri. The school with its courtyard is located to the south, opening towards Aruküla Road. The school yard is separated from the road by concrete noise walls of variable height, filled with green slopes. The sports building is on the north side of the plot. The buildings form an integrated whole surrounded by a common park area with various activities for older and younger children and local residents.
The angular main façade opens to the south. The main common areas – the great hall, canteen, main entrance and cloakroom – are on the ground floor. Through the central atrium, the courtyard reaches also the classrooms in the north and the library on the second floor. The façades to the northeast and northwest are simple yet playful, as fitting for a school. The building leads to the cantilever canopy extending to the south.
The sports building is designed as a single-storey volume. The ball court requiring height is in the north side of the building, the dressing rooms with the gyms open onto the courtyard in the south.
The interior solutions are made of natural materials, with a lot of local timber and limestone. The general impression is bright, spacious and playful. The windows in the interior walls of the classrooms allow views through the building, bringing the outdoor space indoors.
The spatial solutions are rational and built entirely of wood. We combined CLT walls and glulam posts and beams. The expressive canopy and the roof of the ball court have glulam lintels.
Text by: Raivo Kotov
Estonian Architecture Awards 2024
Rae Municipality just outside Tallinn is an administrative unit with burgeoning population growth that includes five hamlets. One of them is Jüri, where a new state hich school was opened early this year. Rae Municipality has an education tradition that goes back to the late 17th century and now the modern school carries on this heritage and promotes education in an innovative manner.
Rae high school was planned for 540 pupils and is symbiotically connected with the new athletic facility – both buildings were designed by KOKO Architects. The new school aims to offer local youths high-quality education close to home, with a focus on topics related to society and entrepreneurship supported by the businesses in the area. That goal is supported by the school building with its spacious and cosy rooms, with a modern learning environment incorporating elements of play. The layout of the rooms in the building is based on the cardinal directions – the north side has classrooms away from hot sunlight, while cafeteria and kitchen are in the south and west, and the administrative wing in the east. The interior was planned to allow students to have pleasant places to congregate and relax in the hallways and open areas.
The overall impression of the new school has light cross-laminated timber in a central position, creating a pleasant, inviting atmosphere. The interior architecture of both the school building and the sports facility follow the principles of sustainable environmental design. The interior architects have chosen materials with a lower environmental impact, bearing in mind advantages of re-use of materials, low production energy and local origin, to reduce energy expenditure associated with transport. Attention has also been devoted to avoiding use of toxic, volatile or otherwise harmful substances. The thoroughly conceived material selection is supplemented by a timeless design idiom meant to last for decades.
Rae school building and its affiliated sports faculty make up a pleasant educational and recreational complex tied into a whole using congenial landscape design, reflecting values that come to light in the buildings’ interiors. The new school and gym premises promote intellectual curiosity and cooperation and sound a call for active movement and discovery.
Ruumipilt 2024