Planning Learning Spaces: A Practical Guide for Architects, Designers and School Leaders

"A welcome and timely addition to the subject of school design at a time of great change." – Professor Alan Jones, President of the Royal Institute of British Architects

"Comprehensive but also very practical approach." – Andreas Schleicher, Director for the Directorate of Education and Skills in Paris, France

"Any community building a new school should read this book." – Michael B. Horn, Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation in Boston, USA

"Builds a bridge from the simple to the extraordinary… awash in opportunity and inspiration." – Professor Stephen Heppell, Chair in Learning Innovation at the Universidad Camilo Jose Cela in Madrid, Spain

Can school design help us to realize a new vision for education that equips young people for life in a fast–changing world? This is the big question at the heart of Planning Learning Spaces, a new guide for anyone involved in the planning and design of learning environments.

Murray Hudson and Terry White have brought together educators and innovative school architects to pool their collective expertise and inspire the design of more intelligent learning spaces.

The authors prompt readers to question common assumptions about how schools should look and how children should be educated:

• Why have so many schools changed relatively little in more than a century?
• What form should a school library take in the Internet age?
• Do classrooms really have to be square?

The book also tackles vital elements of learning space design such as the right lighting, heating and acoustics, and explores the key role of furniture, fixtures, and fittings.

With contributions from leading professionals around the world, including Herman Hertzberger and Sir Ken Robinson, Planning Learning Spaces is an invaluable resource for architects, interior designers, and educators hoping that their project will make a genuine difference.

Highly recommended reading for anyone involved with the process of building or updating an educational space.

Murray Hudson is the Managing Director and Chairman of Gratnells and founder of the Gratnells Learning Rooms project, which campaigns to improve educational outcomes by maximizing the beneficial effects of the learning environment. He sits on the Executive Council and Management Committee of the British Educational Suppliers Association, and was chairman of the British Educational Furniture Manufacturers Group from 2012–16.

Terry White (BPhil, MEd, FRSA) has a passion for excellence in the design of schools and environments for learning. He is committed to sharing good practice in the UK and through his international projects and study visits, working directly with learners, teachers, co-educators and design professionals. He has extensive experience in schools and colleges as a headteacher and principal. He has worked in the public and private sectors of education, with national and local government, schools, industry, universities, contractors and design professionals. He was a director of WSP Buildings and a founding director of Edunova. He has been the lead Education Design Advisor on large-scale building programmes, developing and delivering the design brief for over 40 schools. He is the Chair of the Association for Learning Environments in the UK.