Haljala School

The goal of the internal architectural solution of Haljala school was to create as bright, cozy and pleasant environment for the school family as possible. When creating the solution, we started from the fact that the background should be minimalistic and calm, where the children themselves can bring life and color, and not compete with it. To achieve this, we used as many natural and close-to-nature materials as possible, which would provide a pleasant indoor climate and also reduce the footprint of the solution.

The entrance to the school begins with a long and airy glass gallery where the cloakroom is located. From there, the entrant reaches the hall/dining area rising over two floors, on one side of which there is also a staircase leading to the second floor.
The protruding classroom volumes follow the building's architecture and the gable roof of the school building and create the feeling of an inner street. Cross-laminated wood is used on the walls of the corridor. Some classroom facades have wood with a milled pattern to distinguish the facades. Linoleum is used on the floor because of its natural origin. Thus, the overall impression of the design is bright, but it is a nice cozy background for the rest of the colorful school life.

There are different seating areas in the corridor, some more fitted than others to offer more privacy. Also, the walls of the corridor are lined with hanging systems where the artworks of school students can be placed.

The rooms of the elementary classes on the first floor were given a yellow tone and a wood fiber suspended ceiling to make it look more homely. The elementary school rooms on the second floor have a green floor and light furniture, so that there is a lot of light and warmth in the classrooms. Indoor landscaping is also important - there is a large indoor bed in the hall and plant boxes in the corridors, which add greenery and life.

The school's gymnasium continues the general interior architectural solution - instead of cross-laminated wood, plywood is used, and the grandstand has a bolder yellow color, from where you can watch the school's competitions.

ClientHaljala VallavalitsusYear2023AddressHaljala, EestiArchitectPluss ArchitectsInterior architectsKariina Kaufmann, Kersti Pilar, Kristjan Urke