Rosa Parks Comprehensive School
A schoolyard as a multifunctional meeting place
After around six months of construction, the new neighbourhood square has now been officially opened - together with all those involved. The schoolyard is part of the integrated urban development concept (ISEK) for Neubeckum town centre. As an area open to the neighbourhood, the square offers a variety of recreational, sports and play opportunities - not only for the school community, but also for the surrounding residential area.
"With this neighbourhood square, we have created real added value for the school and the surrounding neighbourhood," emphasised Mayor Michael Gerdhenrich at the opening.
The school community was already actively involved in the planning phase. Wishes and ideas were visualised in a collage and formed the basis for the final design. The focus was on learning and recreational quality as well as exercise opportunities. Particularly in demand were: a green oasis with seating in the centre, a lockable football pitch, a dribbling cage, table tennis tables and raised beds to separate the area from Turmstrasse.
The landscape architecture firm Planungs und Bauleitung Landschaftsingenieurbüro Plant from Bünde took over the planning and integrated the pupils' wishes into the concept. A green classroom was created in the centre as a platform garden with a lawn and seating walls. The 30 x 15 metre sports field with a water-permeable synthetic surface is open to the public. Table tennis tables between the green classroom and the south-west façade of the old building invite pupils to play.
The neighbouring Turmstrasse was also upgraded: Raised beds and benches create a new meeting point and strengthen identification with the neighbourhood. A covered bicycle parking area was also built in the traffic-calmed area.
The designs were presented and discussed at an information event. The unsealing of large areas, the sensitive handling of the existing trees, the new mini playing field and climate adaptation measures using suitable tree species were particularly emphasised.
As part of the construction work, the drainage pipes in the school playground were also renovated and connected to the new combined sewer in Turmstrasse. The total costs for planning and construction amount to around 1,150,000 euros. The town of Beckum is receiving urban development funding for the project from the federal and state governments as part of the "Vibrant Centres" programme - probably amounting to 60 percent of the total costs.
Rosa Parks Comprehensive School
Rosa Parks Comprehensive School is an inter-municipal school run by the towns of Beckum and Ennigerloh. The school authority is the Beckum-Ennigerloh school association. The school site in Neubeckum is currently attended by 518 pupils in years 5 to 10.