In its original configuration, the school was previously invisible and a mishmash of outbuildings and additions. Only the main building remains and is incorporated into the new organisation. The new volume connects and deepens its relationship with the adjacent buildings in height and colour. A balance is created between maintaining distance and completing the building block. The new building is three storeys high, with a roof accessible to the school as a vegetable garden.

On the street side, the two floors house all classrooms for nursing, snoozing and speech therapy. The side facing the playground contains all classrooms, away from the street noise. The courtyard between new building and existing is partly paved and continues to act as a drop-off for school buses. A connecting volume between the main building and the existing one contains the dining area and multipurpose room. The choice of materials is aimed at low environmental impact and high utility value. Energetically, the school meets the passive house standard.

The school has a distinctive programme, which is inward-looking in function of the children, who come from far outside the city to receive specialised education.  For the children, urban stimuli are kept to a minimum they have their own shielded playground. The new building is wrapped around the school like a protective wall.

A facade that dialogues with the 'white facades' across the street in nuanced brickwork detailing. At street level, we open the school's doors to the neighbourhood, a bench integrated into the entrance ramp, carved in wood as a welcoming gesture. It is here that the school literally opens its sight to the neighbourhood after school hours. Within the limited space on the site, we gave the new building as small a footprint as possible to maximise outdoor space. The roof has been made accessible and serves as an outdoor classroom, with conservatory and vegetable garden beds.