Green Square Public School wins top educational architecture award for open-gate design

The award went to a design by BVN Architects, developed with advice from principal Nicole Molloy and other teachers. In one of Australia’s most densely populated neighbourhoods, the school grounds, basketball court and meeting rooms are managed by Sydney City Council and open to everyone on weekends, holidays and after 6.30pm on school days.

Principal Nicole Molloy said it was the first authentic community shared facility she had experienced. "We don't close our gates at 3pm every day and keep people out. They're welcomed in," Molloy said.

The project’s inclusive ethos extends to intergenerational activities. This week, seniors from the neighbourhood joined the school's junior choir for a multi-generational singalong. Kathleen Hii, a 75-year-old resident and choir member, said the children knew moves for the Beatles’ song Here Comes the Sun, including a full squat and rising. “We walked out of there after singing feeling two inches taller,” she said.

AIA jury chair Adam Haddow said the design reflected a philosophy of trust. "In a time of societal paranoia and public distrust, good architecture is about trusting people," Haddow said. He hailed projects that are left open for public use where "occupants assume that someone is not going to come and tag a building or burn it down".

BVN co-chief executive Ali Bounds said the original brief was turned upside down: the multipurpose play area and basketball court were moved from the top floor to the ground floor next to community spaces to avoid the public traipsing through classrooms. Bounds said there were often teenagers waiting outside after 6pm asking, "'When's the gate opening?' And that happens most days."

Molloy said some had feared the school would be vandalised. "I've not had a single issue because it's special to everybody," she said. The community had developed a real ownership of the space. "Because it's theirs seven days a week. We've been here a year, and the place is well looked after and loved, and not just by us."

The NSW government announced in September that every new public school will share facilities with the community outside school hours, with more than 200 schools already committed. Premier Chris Minns said, "I've never been a fan of locking up school grounds to the public. I want kids and families to be able to use the grounds outside of school hours."

The school's walls are covered in a fine tensile mesh designed to make children feel safe without feeling imprisoned, and a web of brick slips that provide privacy from surrounding apartments. Other national winners at the 2026 Australian Institute of Architects awards included Sydney Fish Market, Lacebark apartments, Sydney Harbour Bridge Northern Access Cycleway, Central Station, and EA House by Bokey Grant.