Integrated briefing for better design is underpinned by a new social consciousness, combined with sustained efforts to stop thinking and acting in silos. If cultural, built, and natural environments must be considered together, then an integrated approach to design must connect the spatial, virtual, and organisational elements to create better urban experiences and places. The rapid emergence of vertical schools – perhaps the most critical contemporary form of Australian urban infrastructure – provides an excellent opportunity to leverage the potential of integrated approaches to design. In this guest blog, Tony Matthews discusses the need for the design of vertical schools to be considered across scale, from urban to building to interior, across domains, from education to policy, and inclusive of the range of stakeholders from school to local community.

South Melbourne Primary School. Image courtesy of Hayball.

The vertical school typology is a transformative departure from traditional school design, where buildings follow a horizontal, low-rise profile and school campuses are often on large land parcels with plentiful green space. Vertical schools are usually between four and seventeen storeys. They are designed to accommodate the full range of teaching, administration, and recreational activities within one or two buildings.