Helsinki Upper-Secondary School of Languages

Summary

Helsinki Upper Secondary School of Languages is a educational building designed by Lahdelma & Mahlamäki architects to complement the urban environment of the developing Myllypuro district and the cluster of educational institutions. The Upper-Secondary School is an infill building on a small plot of land that adapts to the scale of the surrounding buildings, while providing a wide range of facilities for 900 students. This has resulted in a compact and very functional building. From a sustainability point of view, it is essential that the School is designed with an emphasis on energy efficiency and the use of proven solutions. The School opens up to its surroundings, particularly at street level, which both enlivens the urban space and creates openness in the building's carefully dimensioned interiors. The spatial design of the School has avoided large open learning environments and instead created adaptable, separate classrooms located around the core of the building. The small plot of land dictates that the outdoor courtyard is raised to the roof of the building.

Helsinki Upper-Secondary School of Languages in cityscape

Helsinki Upper-Secondary School of Languages is located in the heart of the developing district of Myllypuro. It is located in the immediate vicinity of the district's main services and metro station, right next to the campus of the Metropolia University of Applied Sciences also designed by LMA. Together, these institutions form a double campus of great importance for Helsinki.

The Upper-Secondary School is designed to become an integral part of the urban space, replacing a former petrol station on the same site. As is typical of urban infill development, the site is small, which set a strict framework for the design of the building. The small plot did not allow for an outdoor courtyard at ground level, so this need was met by a rooftop courtyard raised to the second floor. The building aims to preserve the long views of the nearby apartment blocks and, on the other hand, to offer new and interesting landscapes thanks to its rooftop courtyard. In terms of scale, the School blends in with its surroundings and does not rise above the nearby buildings. The proximity of the metro station is also an important urban factor, which is why the two main entrances to the School face east, towards the entrances to the metro station.

Architecture

The Upper-Secondary School of Languages was built using tried and tested solutions rather than experimental ones. The building has a concrete frame, which contributes to sustainable development thanks to its reliability. In addition, energy-efficient design, modern building technology and the use of locally produced renewable energy from heat pumps and solar panels were used to achieve sustainability objectives. A fundamental aspect in terms of energy consumption and environmental impact is that the School is a compact and well-dimensioned building with a high degree of functionality and versatility. This has been ensured by user-oriented design, in which representatives of the City of Helsinki and the Helsinki Education Division have been closely involved throughout the planning process.

The daily activities of the School have been opened up to the outside to enliven the urban space, for example with large glass walls in the fine arts classrooms and public areas. Similarly, the multi-purpose hall, which requires large enclosed wall surfaces, has been raised to the first floor despite its technical complexity, thus keeping the building as open and accessible as possible at street level. The building's relatively narrow frame allows plenty of natural light into the interior. The basic layout of the School, with corridors for transitions in the centre of the building and learning spaces on the outer edges of the building, also contributes to the spaciousness and lightness of the spaces.

The building's facades create a link with the landmark Myllypuro building, the nearby Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, by using similar perforated aluminium sheeting, but with a different rhythm, giving the Upper-Secondary School of Languages its own character. As a partially transparent material, the perforated aluminium sheet also adds lightness to the facades. In addition, the facades are made of wood and graphic concrete, on which expressions and letters have been engraved to illustrate the multilingual nature of the School.

Helsinki Art Museum selected a collection of works by artist Jani Ruscica for the Upper-Secondary School of Languages, which he designed specifically for this building, taking into account the architecture. Similarly, the design of the School left room for Ruscica's works. In addition, the courtyard is home to the sculpture Omega by artist Antero Toikka, familiar from the previous location of the Upper-Secondary School of Languages in Itäkeskus. In the future, the building will also feature a specially designed sound piece.

Spatial planning

Helsinki Upper-Secondary School of Languages is a very practical building, designed to meet the needs of its users – students and teachers. A lot of space was needed, and the School has room for 900 students. There are four floors of study space and a basement with technical facilities, among other things.

In the design of the facilities, the aim was to emphasise the multicultural and inclusive nature of the School by making the ground floor easily accessible. In the evenings, after school hours, the first two floors are also open to non-students, for example, the art classrooms are used by a music school and the meeting rooms are available for external use.

The facilities of the School are modern Finnish learning environments. However, instead of large open spaces, many separate classrooms have been designed to support focused learning. The spaces are adaptable and multi-purpose, and many rooms can be opened and closed with movable partition walls as required and connected to each other to form larger spaces. In addition to general-purpose classrooms and group work spaces, the School's learning spaces include fine arts and music classrooms, teaching kitchens and laboratories. The rooftop courtyard and sheltered roof terraces complete the facilities, providing places for recreation and multi-faceted learning.

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