This project involved the redevelopment and expansion of this iconic Kowloon school, one of the oldest schools in Hong Kong. Two new buildings were required, a Performing Arts Block and a Science Centre, to meet the needs of a growing school population and to make the school more efficient and functional. They also had to blend in well with the existing Grade II historic building and Peel Block.

The Performing Arts Block design ingeniously turned an existing 18m-high Banyan tree behind the old canteen into the central theme of the new building, the lower two floors of which “embrace” the tree. An amphitheatre was designed around the tree, with space flowing from the performing deck up to the first floor of an outdoor canteen patio, blending indoor and outdoor environments and seamlessly connecting with the open grounds of the main campus. Balconies outside the music and drama studios function as breakout spaces and performing pods, creating spaces to study beside the tree.

The Science Block was placed south of the Peel Block, creating a landscaped courtyard amongst the other school buildings. This state-of-the-art building holds 13 modular science laboratories on the upper floors, with breakout spaces provided on every floor. Two modules were carved out of the building, providing natural cross ventilation for the building and places to gather.

Sustainability-wise, the south façade of the Performing Arts block houses horizontal sun-shading devices reducing the impact of the sun on internal areas. Building materials with recycled content were used, including recycled timber, carpet, and linoleum. The Science Block provides “green pods” for planting and solar roof panels, while energetic sustainable design is present throughout, in the colours applied to the walls, through a perforated brise-soleil, louvred screens that improve the penetration of sunlight and ventilation, and in the vertical greening in breakout spaces that further enlarge the school’s plentiful green space.