New Junior School for Notting Hill & Ealing High School

Sustainable design meets educational excellence

A new junior school that is environmentally responsible, providing high-quality teaching facilities for generations to come.

Notting Hill & Ealing High School, part of the Girls’ Day School Trust, set an ambitious brief: to create a new Junior School that would not only meet educational needs but also model a sustainable future for the next generation of girls.

Housed across two sister blocks for arts and sciences, the new Junior School has a simple layout but a bold identity. The two buildings are connected by a vibrant green link structure which contains an open, welcoming foyer and the new library above.

The new purpose-built school transforms the site into a living demonstration of sustainable design. Working collaboratively with the GDST and pupils, we prioritised carbon reduction in use and transparency of construction techniques for educational purposes.

By leaving the timber structure exposed internally, we have made sustainable choices visible to students and staff. The wooden interiors create warm, calm, nurturing spaces beneath the pitched roofs, and the school community frequently comments on the wellbeing benefits this brings to teaching and learning.

Fully accessible internally and externally, the site includes classrooms, specialist teaching spaces for music, art, science and computing, a light-filled library with a rooftop lantern, and a large flexible hall for all kinds of activities.

Outdoors, the science garden, forest school area, and two playgrounds all emphasise the importance of nature and activity in making learning a hands-on experience.

With its environmentally-friendly features, the building not only serves as an inspiring learning environment but as a physical embodiment of the lasting impact our girls can make in the realm of sustainability.