Bøgelunden Daycare

  • Client

    Allerød Municipality

  • Collaborators

    Architect and interdesign consulant Susanne Staffeldt

  • Location

    Byagervej 4, DK-3450 Allerød

  • Area

    1,500 m2

  • Status

    Completed in 2020

  • Sustainability Certification

    DGNB Gold

Pedagogical knowledge behind alternative solution

An increasing population in Blovstrød has created a need to offer modern daycare centers with spaces for play and learning. The new children's house Bøgelunden will be the second of two new institutions connected to Blovstrød school. The first – Pilelunden – has been inaugurated. Bøgelunden combines the latest knowledge in pedagogy with the employees' wishes and ambitions for their future day care institutions. The building's two floors have space for 150 nursery and kindergarten children placed in four large home groups as well as a smaller unit with special spaces.

Educational research shows that children benefit greatly from being part of mixed-age groups. Therefore, nursery and kindergarten children are not separated, but are instead included in children's groups that contain a mixture of children aged 1-6 years.

Rather than large common areas, each group has its own living room, which gives the staff a greater overview and the surroundings become more manageable for the children, especially the very young. The 4 +1 living rooms can offer a wider selection of activities in close, safe surroundings and create a greater identity and sense of belonging for the children.

A green play ramp as an active element

The beech grove embraces the green courtyard with its angular shape. In the same way as with Pilelunden, the house's outdoor area is accessible from both the living room and the first floor. Rather than a traditional staircase, the terrain becomes a ramp that functions as an active element. It has a twisted shape that creates play space both on and under the ramp.

With a facade in reddish-brown screen tiles, the materiality of the building strongly refers to the surrounding residential quarter with facades that appear in red bricks.

The windows vary in size, but all start from the fact that they can be included as an active part of the children's play. Some as small peepholes to the outside world, others are large with wide frames, where the children can both play and wave goodbye and hello.

Both of Blovstrød's new day care centers have in common that some of the interior walls can be removed. This makes the houses flexible and future-proof, as they can easily adapt to a changing demographic composition and changing needs and wishes.

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