National Award for Sure Start Newbiggin Hall Childrens Centre
January 26 2007
The Newbiggin Hall Sure Start Children's Centre has won a prestigious Partners In Excellence award in recognition of its excellence and innovation in the delivery of services to children and families. The Centre won the Building for Sure Start category at the National Awards, held at Lancaster House in London on the 4th of December, presented by Cherie Booth, QC, Patron of Partners in Excellence.
The £1.2m facility, designed by award winning Newcastle based architectural practice, Jane Darbyshire and David Kendall (JDDK) Ltd, has been built adjacent to the City's existing Galafield building. The innovative design creates a secure and sheltered outdoor play area in the centre of the building, with the childcare, office, water and sensory play and community spaces wrapped around it. The open plan childcare area provides flexible day care provision for 49 children.
The Centre's entrance is dominated by striking metal and glass sculptured gates by local artistS William Pym and Laura Johnston with another piece, a sculptured tree, within the entrance courtyard.
The unique creative design has captured the imagination of parents, children and workers from the area who had the maximum input into the services, functions and design of the building in partnership with the architects, Nicky Watson and Stuart Franklin of JDDK.
The result is a building of which the Newbiggin hall community are immensely proud. The building is on one level with curved walls leading visitors into the building and creating a welcoming and supportive, high quality modern environment quite different from that experienced by most of the community on a day to day basis. A calming neutral colour scheme is punctuated with areas of bold colour defining key areas of the building. Child-focused design features and fittings such as child height windows, showers and even a fish tank have been incorporated in the scheme creating a multi-sensory experience for even the youngest members of the community.
Paul Court, Manager of the Children's Centre, commented, "Itis a fantastic building from which we're able to offer a fantastic range of services, opportunities and life chances to the local residents of Newbiggin Hall. It's a fully integrated service funded by the local authority, Newcastle Education and Health Trusts and the voluntary sector who are working her together to provide a first class service for all local families with children 0-5 and we also recognise the needs of the wider, extended family."