The new Children’s Centre fits into the territory as an innovative educational centre in dialogue with the city. The building inserts concepts such as play, discovery, exploration and imagination within the same architecture, producing a stimulating and interactive space, suitable for the growth of children from 0 to 6 years old. The centre consists of two buildings: one housing the crèche and the ASCA section, and the other housing the kindergarten, workshops and ancillary services. These two buildings are separated by the entrance path that recalls the imagery of a “canyon” hollowed out by the passage of water, as in the nearby streams in the province of Alessandria, which encourages the children to explore and learn, and draws them towards the educational activities.
The canyon is both a patio for recreation and a shading system for the common areas. The other façades of the Centre are characterised by pergola spaces covered by a bioclimatic double skin that also introduces concepts of play, exploration and knowledge, combining them with those of controlling the building’s energy efficiency. The two façades, where all the classrooms open up, recall domestic motifs of comfort and protection, which have openings of different kinds to allow access to the complex’s garden. These openings allow the children to interact with the natural surroundings in a spontaneous and individual way, while promoting play as a vehicle for knowledge.