Louis-Saint-Laurent School / STGM Architectes + Ateliers Architecture

Architects: Ateliers Architecture, STGM Architectes
Area: 1541 m²
Year: 2023
Photographs: Maxime Brouillet
Manufacturers: EQUITONE, Kalwall®, Abet Laminati, Akupanel, Armstrong, Beldden Brick, CGC, Polyflor, Vicwest, ezoBord
Design Team: STGM Architectes
Collaborator Architect: Ateliers Architecture
Municipality: Compton
Country: Canada

Louis-Saint-Laurent School, an expansion designed by STGM Architectes with Ateliers Architecture in Canada, enhances the original 1959 primary school with five preschool classrooms, a learning hub, and a new entrance hall that opens to the schoolyard, all aimed at supporting a child-focused and outdoor-connected learning environment. A new hall links the extension to the existing structure, giving access to the central learning hub, while interior renovations include relocating the staff room near the main office and converting two isolated classrooms for arts and music. Three added cloakrooms help manage schoolyard access and reduce upper-floor traffic, and revised circulation near the gym now allows direct public entry. The wood-framed extension is clad in clay brick, with contrasting red-tinted composite cement panels marking recessed entrances. Generous glazing and curved design elements throughout reference the local landscape, bringing light and movement into the updated architectural language.

Louis-saint-laurent school / stgm architectes + ateliers architecture

The school expansion was designed to create a living and learning environment specifically adapted for children, while preserving a strong connection to the outdoors. The project includes five new preschool classrooms, a central learning hub, and a new entrance hall that provides direct access to the schoolyard. The original building, completed in 1959, reflects the typical characteristics of primary schools from that period, featuring a two-story structure with a sloped roof and red brick cladding.

A corridor extending from the new hall into the existing building creates a seamless circulation path throughout the school and provides access to the learning hub, which serves as the central element of the project. Renovation work within the original structure reorganized several areas to improve spatial clarity, including the administrative sector, where the staff room was moved closer to both the main office and the existing entrance.

Two classrooms that were previously somewhat isolated on the ground floor of the original building have been converted for use in arts and music activities. Three new cloakrooms were introduced on the ground floor to manage access through various schoolyard entrances, which in turn helps reduce circulation in the upper-floor corridors. Moreover, reconfigured spaces near the gymnasium now provide direct access for community use from the exterior. An outdoor classroom has also been created on the roof of the extension to further enhance opportunities for outdoor learning.

The extension, constructed with a wooden structural system, integrates cohesively with the existing building in both scale and material choice. The new pavilion is primarily clad in clay brick, chosen for its durability and timeless quality. A contrasting color palette was used to differentiate the new addition while ensuring it fits seamlessly with the overall structure. Recessed sections within the building volume define and shelter entrances on both the front façade and the schoolyard side. A shift in material within these recessed areas adds visual depth and breaks up the massing of the new building. Red-tinted composite cement panels are used in these zones, offering impact resistance and long-term durability while contributing a sense of warmth and approachability to the school environment.

Large glazed openings in both the hall and classrooms punctuate the façades, introducing natural light and contributing to a sense of lightness in the overall architectural composition. Curved forms are consistently incorporated throughout the design, appearing in both exterior and interior elements. These rounded shapes, which reference the natural contours of the surrounding landscape, serve as a defining feature of the extension, bringing a sense of movement and energy to the structure. The project was developed in collaboration with Ateliers Architecture, a local architectural practice.