Live Vocational College is an accessible focal point for special education students

Live Vocational College, commissioned by the Live Foundation in Leppävaara in Espoo, was designed for special groups, but it was not strictly intended as a special education facility. The beautiful and safe spaces attract students to the premises, even if going to school does not always seem so easy. The architects paid attention to the pleasant lighting of the premises and the soothing acoustics.

Live Vocational College, commissioned by the then Invalidisäätiö (the disability foundation), currently known as the Live Foundation, is a modern upper secondary level education facility in Leppävaara in Espoo. The design was based on functionality, efficient use of space and adaptability, but corresponding sites could hardly be benchmarked.

“Finland has few vocational special education institutions, and education has undergone significant reforms in recent years. That is why designing the college was a challenging task for us users too,” says Principal Antti Aavikko from Live Foundation, responsible for design management. The intention was to steer away from the garish colours typical of school buildings, a cold institutional look and the characteristic modern aesthetic of technology agencies. “We worked closely with the architects and carefully considered the scale, aesthetic and atmosphere of the premises.”

We wanted the main lobby and the facade to be very impressive, because the aim was to renew the idea of what educational institutions that take into account the needs of special groups could look like. “We did a great job and now have a beautiful and inviting building that fits in seamlessly with its surroundings but also stands out and is not forgettable.”

Interior and exterior spaces feel safe

Linja Arkkitehdit, which is now part of Sweco, initially focused on managing the physical environment. The college was designed on a rock lot along the busy Turuntie road. “The building is modelled after the palm of the hand, in which Turuntie is left on the outside and the courtyard is protected by the hand,” says Principal Designer Timo Koljonen. All pick-up and drop-off and maintenance traffic uses one-way routes, and the building can be accessed via an external elevator from the pedestrian and cycling route along Turuntie.

The building was designed for about 400 students. Some of the learning facilities prepare young people and adult students for everyday and working life, while others are reserved for students of commercial subjects, the restaurant industry, nursing or property maintenance. The college also has its own dance hall and audio-visual, music, studio and video facilities. “There were many different areas, and each of them had to be made easily adaptable for multiple uses,” says Sweco’s architect in charge Juha Kujanpää.

Experts from various disability organisations and the students themselves were allowed to present their wishes to the designers. Pleasant lighting and acoustics were mentioned in many responses. ”Open learning environments are challenging for special groups, because they may be extremely stressful in terms of being able to focus and pay attention,” Aavikko says. This is why a large number of private spaces with walls were designed for the college, in addition to shared facilities. Long direct corridors were also avoided.

The Turuntie side facade of the college is covered with a ceramic pipe profile with the windows hidden behind the vivid surface. The solution filters out most of the daylight, which helps create an ideal ratio of natural and artificial light for users on the inside.

“Furthermore, thanks to the pipe walls, the building stays cool even during the summer, and there is no need for machine cooling,” Kujanpää says. The college is heated with geothermal heat, and the wood facade has been finished with an ecological impregnating agent with silicon minerals from OrganoWood®, which makes the natural wood surface grey with time. “Indeed, the facade is maintenance-free.”

The facilities had to be accessible from a variety of perspectives to make it easy to move around the building, even if the student had e.g. a visual impairment or other impairments affecting their ability to move around. “We are trying to create aesthetically beautiful and interesting spaces where different hues of colour are used to help the eye focus on things that are essential to the user,” Kujanpää says. A wood veneer door, for example, differs sufficiently from the light wall surface. “And at the same time, the solution corresponds to conventional operating environments outside the school.”

Successful fusion of aesthetic and functionality

Live Vocational College received the Hurraa prize in 2020 from the City of Espoo Building Control Department. “It is a fine example of how aesthetic and functionality can be combined,” Koljonen says. The fact that the architecture contributes to the value of the area and is well-designed for the plot and the surrounding pinewood as well as the building’s impressive interior spaces were highlighted as commendable.

According to Juha Kujanpää, the reason for success is the active presence of Invalidisäätiö and the positive design management. “The client trusted us and provided us with a massive amount of invaluable information on user needs.”

The end result reflects the upcoming trends in vocational education and training, according to which learning primarily happens outside school. According to Antti Aavikko, students are attracted to pleasant facilities, high-quality teaching and individual guidance. And the free breakfast porridge is not bad either.”Above all, special education students need a place where they feel welcome. We are a focal point for students, where they can return and set out into the world and spread their wings.”