The fundamental changes that are occurring in the corporate workplace are being matched by similar changes in education. Changes in teaching methods, the nature of the curriculum, the size and composition of the student population and the impact of information technology are all challenging traditional definitions of universities, colleges, and schools.

Despite the increasing role of distance learning and IT-based learning in many institutions, the role of physical buildings will remain extremely important because of the crucial role of the discourse generated by face-to-face interaction. However, the role that buildings play in education and the way the buildings are procured and managed will change profoundly.

These changes to the role of the physical estate can be considered in terms of identity and brand, user needs, space requirements, and estate opportunities.

As universities become less self-contained and develop into networked organisations, new concepts of procuring and managing space are developing. To enhance flexibility, university portfolios are now more likely to consist of a variety of different types of tenure, as well as making use of publicly available facilities within the local vicinity. With public funds becoming increasingly scarce, universities are looking to the private sector for funding through partnerships, and the focus for estate management is shifting from cost reduction to income generation.

Estates are being rationalised according to needs, maintenance costs/feasibility, and a desire to maximise assets. New property models are being sought to enable universities to become increasingly innovative in the selection, procurement, and management of their facilities and sites.

DEGW applies these concepts in the development of estate strategies and new facilities for institutions such as the British Library, Sheffield Hallam University, London School of Economics, the University of Plymouth, the University of Sussex/University of Brighton, MIT, Stanford Medical School, and Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.

Radical educational transformation is also occurring in primary and secondary education. The £60 billion Building Schools for the Future programme in the UK is redeveloping or remodelling every secondary school in England over the next 15 years. Other major capital programmes are funding remodelling of primary schools, the development of the Academies programme, and schools rebuilding programmes in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

DEGW combines three decades of international design strategy and research with cutting-edge educationalist experience to create a unique offering to the schools sector in the UK and internationally. A key element of this offering is the linking of user needs to spatial design.

The Learning Environments Group links this cross-practice experience into understanding pedagogy and ensuring that this is represented in the design solution.  In BSF this will ensure that the 21st century schools we are designing will be capable of transformation in educational outcomes, as we can facilitate design solutions to encapsulate the local authorities’ pedagogical and pastoral care aspirations.

In 2007 – 2008, DEGW led one of the research teams on Project Faraday which sought to reinvent the school science experience in terms of space and experiments. We are now working with our two partner schools to implement the new science environments we designed.

DEGW is currently undertaking a major 30-month research project for the Department of Children, Schools and Families on the impact of personalized learning on school design. For the National College of Schools Leadership, we are providing change management approaches in primary and secondary schools, achieving educational transformation in remodeled schools, and on the impact of school design on Autism Spectrum Disorders.

DEGW is also acting as Client Design Advisor and Technical Advisor for the City of Wolverhampton’s £300 million BSF programme, working with 27 schools across the city to ensure that their teaching and learning visions are translated into effective and adaptable school designs.