Following a masterplanning process in 2016 to address the arrival of their first Year 7 population, Russell & Yelland designed the purpose-built Caritas Centre as their fifth project with Nazareth Catholic College. The senior facility delivers generous and highly flexible learning areas, tutorials, breakouts, a café and staff areas. Additional car parking and new landscaping connections cater for growth. 

With a wedge-shaped site and limited access, the project was like building a ship in a bottle. Careful planning ensured the delivery sequencing of larger materials wasted no time or space. Wider corridors foster opportunities for informal gatherings and sliding glass partitions extend or close off generous teaching and learning zones. Making good use of a tight site, the form takes forking and snaking cues from the adjacent Torrens river and its iconic gums.

This project involved the complete fit-out of an existing office building to provide Year 12 accommodation on a separate campus across the River Torrens from the main Nazareth campus. All internal partitions were removed and the entire building reconstructed from the inside out, with only the skin and internal staircases retained. 

A series of open, flexible senior student learning spaces combine with a dedicated art, design and science space to cater for a wide variety of subjects at the St Gabriel Centre. We designed a highly flexible teaching environment with sliding partitions and shared wet areas to allow for a range of teaching modes, including small group classes through to exhibitions hosting 200 people. Integrated multimedia and AV presentation facilities further extend this functionality, and help remote students to remain connected with the main campus. The project was completed in nine months from design to completion.