In February 1996 Walters & Cohen was approached by Jigsaw Day Nurseries to design a new nursery at Stockley Park, a large business park near Uxbridge, Middlesex. A strict design code is applied to all new buildings in the business park, and Jigsaw’s previous brick prototype was not considered appropriate.
Our design provides an energy-efficient and cost-effective building, and creates an environment that is stimulating for small children and different to that at home. Good natural light into all the spaces was a key design generator, as was the strong relationship between the home bases and the south-facing garden. The home bases and activity street are under a barrel vaulted roof with the service zone as a lower flat-roofed element adjacent. The two linear forms, one transparent, the other solid, slip past one another to create the entrance to the school.
Jigsaw Stockley Park was built on an extremely tight budget under a Design and Build contract. An excellent relationship with the contractor was essential to the success of this project.
