Nature for Nurture

The built environment of low socio- economic communities expresses a stereotypical standardisation, setting a tone of poverty and deprivation. This apparent neglect fosters a social division in our country, inspiring an opportunity to use the built environment to change the perceived identity of poverty-struck communities. The architectural context of communities is evidenced through three prominent environments - the home, the community, and the school.

Arguably the most pivotal of these is the school as it bears the foundations of a community's future generation. When this microsystem is burdened in a world of deprivation, this causes adverse long- term cognitive, social, and emotional effects on children, fueling the cycle of poverty.

This thesis explores how a community can herald a new path for children through utilising the built environment of a non- traditional primary school. This was achieved through three key frameworks of low socio-economic communities, child development and positive place attachment through the element of water. These frameworks will inform a design process that is driven through the mauri of water, resulting in a built environment that acts as the bridge to learning and the power of the land. In turn, this process fosters a primary school that is nurturing, bicultural and innovative.