4th Prize: Competition LiRo School, Augsburg
Site / Urban Design
Three freestanding buildings are arranged around a central, publicly accessible square, which provides access to all three. Each building is assigned a specific function. The sports hall and residential building are located toward the heavily trafficked Bürgermeister-Ackermann-Straße. Set farther back, the school building faces the park and provides a sheltered learning environment protected from the main road.
The school courtyard opens toward the adjacent park and connects the school building with the sports hall. A covered link between the two buildings marks the boundary between the school area and the public and residential areas.
School Building
Based on the urban design concept, the school building is designed as a three-story structure. The recessed entrance guides visitors into an inviting foyer with views of the landscaped inner courtyard and the cloakroom area.
The assembly hall and break area can be combined with the adjacent rooms for dance, theater, and movement, the music room, and the cafeteria, allowing for flexible use of the spaces. The generous ground-floor layout creates a bright and welcoming north–south connection that can also be opened toward the outside.
A spacious, well-lit staircase directly beside the entrance provides clear orientation within the building and connects the two upper floors. From the staircase, children are guided directly into the central cloakroom area with a dirt-control zone. From there, the learning area opens onto a central “marketplace” with four classrooms and their associated ancillary rooms.
A flower-planted loggia brings the green landscape of the park into the school and also serves as a learning space. All rooms around the marketplace have visual connections to it through built-in seating windows, promoting an open atmosphere and collaborative learning.
The administration area is organized as a separate cluster on the first floor, providing short routes and efficient workflows. The second floor has the same classroom layout as the floor below. The administration area is replaced by specialist rooms for religious education, creative activities, and practical work. The outdoor workshop yard can be accessed directly from the workshop.
Sports Hall
The sports hall and equipment rooms are located in the basement and are visible from the school courtyard. Spectators can sit on the ground floor in front of the changing rooms.
A staircase in the recessed entrance area leads to the upper floor and the roof. The roof accommodates a hard-surface sports court. Facing Bürgermeister-Ackermann-Straße, the façade rises to the upper floor and functions as a noise barrier; it is glazed in this area.
Steel mesh screens protect the sports court on the sides facing the park, school courtyard, and residential building. They maintain visual connections between the interior and exterior and promote a transparent and open relationship between the different areas.
Residential Building
The ground floor, including the entrance area, is slightly recessed. The caretaker’s office and laundry room, for example, can be reached quickly and conveniently. The multipurpose rooms are positioned for easy visibility and access.
The ground floor contains accessible apartments as well as standard apartments. All apartments are equipped with a bathroom, kitchenette, and loggia. As on the ground floor, the rooms on the upper floors are arranged around a central courtyard.
The 33 rooms on each of the first through third floors are accessed via an open access gallery. The fourth floor contains the double rooms and the parent-and-child rooms.
A rooftop terrace is planned in accordance with the required setbacks and, in particular, as a safe outdoor area close to the residential units, with play facilities for the children.
Outdoor Areas and School Courtyard
While the buildings define the boundaries of the site through their orderly urban arrangement, the open spaces are designed with free-flowing, detached forms that allow the surrounding natural landscape to extend into the site.
The central square transitions into the school courtyard and is defined by long, curved benches offering different viewing directions, as well as by a planted area. “Activity islands” are arranged throughout the school courtyard.
A terrace beside the cafeteria provides space to relax. A school garden and outdoor classrooms bring lessons into the open air. Sports and activity areas give the children room to spend their breaks actively.
