Godwin Austen Johnson (GAJ) has delivered their second facility for the group, following the successful launch of the Ladybird Early Learning Centre Dubai in 2016.

The new Ladybird Nursery Al Barsha marks the third campus in the city for the group, which includes Ladybird Nursery JVC Dubai, and the second designed by GAJ.

It is a single storey building with indoor and outdoor play areas and a similar theme to the original design with each of the three age groups having their own distinct area.

The scale of the classrooms is governed by the age groups which in turn defines the placement of sizes of various elements in the teaching rooms. The youngest children are placed nearest to reception for ease of access for buggies, while the one to two year olds have their own wing with internal garden and links to the exterior, but away from the main active internal play space. The older children have access to a wide choice of protected internal and external play areas with a mixture of both traditional and shared learning spaces.

“The skill of role playing is an important part of learning through a child’s environment, and this is reflected in our interiors,” said Jason Burnside, partner at Godwin Austen Johnson. “We have created a landscape in the main play areas that features symbols of familiar objects such as houses and fences with modular cut-outs of free-standing buildings adding tangible elements to the scenery.”

Open classrooms and shared learning spaces throughout the nursery create a sense of unrestrained and boundary free environment while the abundance of natural daylight through skylights and the large, glazed façade helps promote an optimum learning environment for both children and teachers.

Walls and adjoining facilities are kept to a minimum to encourage flow and avoid inhibitory barriers and additional innovative learning and social spaces have been created within the nooks and corners of the building. Small, coloured pods in the shape of small houses, have been added as storage spaces. From the initial point of entry fixtures and fittings are appropriately scaled to children’s height and appeal to their interests – a low counter in the reception area to child-sized sinks and toilets and low shelving in the classrooms were all designed in keeping with the behaviour and user experience of the children.