Kitas - Christian Youth Village Service Germany

D:4 designed three potential daycare centres for a Christian sponsor

The trigger for the design of no less than three daycare centres on different challenging plots of land in the Berlin district of Spandau was the district's call for tenders for the allocation of leasehold plots for use by a daycare centre.

On behalf of the CJD - Christliches Jugenddorfwerk Deutschland, we proposed three designs according to the building regulations on the plots as well as the individual requirements of the client and the location.

In a first round of decision-making by the client, it was decided to enter the race with two designs - for the locations Semmelländerweg and Spekteweg. The plans include a design of the outdoor facilities, a traffic concept, a rough time schedule as well as a first cost and financing concept.

On Semmelländerweg, we have proposed a four-part structure with three gable-roofed houses and a connecting structure. The proportions and orientation of the buildings are based on the surrounding buildings. This should create the feeling of a "village in the city" with a village square in the centre. The building can accommodate a total of 100 children. The pedagogical focus is to be on language according to the Reggio Pedagogy approach. The central architectural feature will be the piazza as a meeting and networking place on the ground floor.

In Spekteweg, we have placed the focus of the design on nutrition and movement in accordance with the conditions of the property - a large part of the garden with a lot of greenery. The building consists of a short module on the street side and a longer block that angles slightly on the eastern side of the property. The central entrance connects all functional units with each other. To the garden area, arcades along the length of the façade connect the interior and exterior areas and provide plenty of daylight. In total, up to 180 children can be accommodated in the day care centre.