Larch Canopy at Ralph Allen School

The timber canopy links the three main blocks at Ralph Allen, a secondary school in Bath. The undulating roof profile provides an informal covered social space that frequently doubles up as an outdoor learning classroom.

Derived from a functional brief to provide adequate shelter to facilitate outdoor teaching, the canopy has also helped raise the level of design aspiration across the school.

Simple galvanized posts lift the lightweight larch structure high above the student activity below creating generous, lofty spaces for contemplation, socialising and learning. The density of the structure playfully varies to animate the space with ever changing light and shadow. Clad in polycarbonate sheets, the canopy protects the students from the elements.

The canopy acts as a gateway to the central quadrangle beyond, defining its edge and fostering a relationship between the disparate adjacent buildings and outdoor landscape. The canopy was the first phase in a wider Masterplan.