Those who work at Caribbean Park will certainly appreciate the arrival of the Greenwood childcare centre on the estate. Rather than having to leave home or the office early to deliver children, there’s the benefit of Greenwood on the doorstep. This centre accommodating children from six months to five years now joins food and gymnasium offerings at Caribbean Park.

A childcare facility comes with certain requirements: outdoor play areas that are screened from those passing by, a high degree of security and importantly, a playful environment designed for children as well as for staff working at these centres. Benefitting from a sunken garden, flanked by established trees and a high fence, is Greenwood. Unlike the surrounding office buildings that have a palette of steel and glass, here there’s a looser architectural expression, both indoors and out. As with the office buildings, there’s a rhythm of external aluminium beams, but in this case the beams are vertical and ‘sliced’ up in a number of colours from orange through to blue, grey and silver. Creating a screen to diffuse the sunlight, enable ventilation and provide privacy, these fixed battens cause a ‘veranda’ effect on the first floor when the sliding glass doors to the terrace are left open. And on the ground floor, the faceted glass walls pick up on the language of the staggered garden beds with their distinctive Corten steel edges.

While the interior spaces have been carved into a few rooms and open play areas, with the older children using the upper floor and the younger children on the ground floor the outdoor play area is enjoyed by all. Finished with faux green turf, with a rainbow running track, this secluded outdoor area includes outdoor huts and brightly coloured play equipment.

As with the Middleman Café, PRA was mindful of not only how the spaces would feel and function, but also how those working in the surrounding offices would perceive this centre. So those looking from above would not see any mechanical vents on the roof, but instead, simply a delightful rainbow-coloured running track in the distance.

Services: Feasibility, Town Planning, Architectural Service, Interior Design, Construction Services

Photography: Alex Reinders

Project Collaborators: Caribbean Park, DNM Consulting, OCULUS, iWolff (Interiors)