How care, sustainability and architectural finesse come together at (College) Ariane de Ranitz

School of the future

When you walk onto the construction site of (College) Ariane de Ranitz in Utrecht, you don't just see bricks, concrete and wood. You see the future of education. Here, contractor P. van Leeuwen from Meerkerk is working on an innovative school for children with (multiple) disabilities. And that while education continues there as usual. "This is no ordinary project," explain Geran van Dijk, project manager at Aannemersbedrijf P. van Leeuwen and school director Maarten Tromp. "It is a challenge, but one we are proud of."

Aannemersbedrijf P. van Leeuwen has been a fixture in the Dutch construction industry for 45 years. What began as a small family business has grown into an all-round player in the market, retaining the warm family culture. "You notice that it's convivial and human with us," Van Dijk explains. "And that translates to the way we work. No long stories, just get down to business: that's our mentality. We value quality and put reliability first." 

Renovation and new construction

The Ariane de Ranitz project is a renovation and new construction of a school for children with (multiple) disabilities. A unique project in which part of the existing building with sports hall and therapy pool is not only being renovated, but also expanded with new construction. School director Tromp explains, "The building was built in the mid-1960s. A beautiful building, but it is dated. And education is very different today than it was in the '60s and '70s. It was time for an update." 

The new building is anything but standard. Van Dijk: "The facades have rounded corners and even the window frames and glass are round. You don't see that often in construction. We prefabricated these elements in our workshop to make them fit perfectly." The wooden cladding also contributes to the building's special look, he says, adding: "We work in six phases, each time demolishing and rebuilding a part. We deliberately do this in stages so that the school experiences as little disruption as possible. Education continues as usual, even though we are busy building a few meters away." And that was quite exciting for the school. Tromp: "That's why we involve the children and their parents as much as possible in the construction process. Of course there are occasional inconveniences, but the children adapt enormously well. And the advantage is that they get to experience the whole project up close. For example, they were allowed to think along about the art in the new building and the children made the drawings for on the construction hoardings." 

Building with care at its heart 

(College) Ariane de Ranitz is part of the DKP Education Group, in cooperation with De Hoogstraat Rehabilitation and BSO Vriendjes. What makes the school so unique is the specific care needs of the children. That requires special facilities. "We are dealing with classrooms in which hoists are placed and where care is central," says Van Dijk. "This is no ordinary school. Every classroom has a high-low pantry block and there are numerous care facilities integrated into the building." In addition, sustainability is an important aspect of the project. The building is completely gasless and heat pumps will be installed to optimally regulate the climate. "We meet today's desired standards. Triple glazing and well-insulated building envelopes: it is all designed to make the school ready for the future." 

Fine place to go to school 

When the project is completed a year from now, Van Dijk expects to look back with pride. "We are all working toward that one goal: a beautiful, sustainable school building where children can enjoy going to school and teachers can enjoy teaching." Trump adds: "The teaching was already good, of course, but now the building matches that. The new ramp gives the children more independence. And for the parents it's nice too: they now know that their children go to school in perhaps the best school building in the Netherlands. From climate and accessibility to adjustments for stimulus sensitivity: everything is right and the children are central."