Located on Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung and Gunung Willam-Balluk Country, Gowrie Broadmeadows Valley Childcare Centre (GBVCC) sits within a busy education precinct and forms part of the KOSS 2025 Bundle 2—a program delivering new modular kindergarten facilities to expand access to high-quality early learning. The project maximises co-location benefits and modular construction efficiencies while responding to each site’s community and Country.

As the Bundle’s only extension to an existing kindergarten, GBVCC addresses significant unmet demand in a community where many children experience complex needs. The new addition delivers 66 extra funded places for 3- and 4-year-old Kinder, increasing access from 15 to up to 25 hours weekly, described as life-changing for local families. It provides two Kinder Learning Rooms connected to a sheltered deck, a nature-play garden and a staff courtyard, along with flexible internal spaces for small-group learning, planning, meetings and sensory support.

Modular construction efficiencies informed a layered design that extends the existing architectural language. Considered siting of a playful biophilic addition in the primary school’s south-eastern corner merges built form and outdoor play space, while relocating the shared fence-line strengthened daily interactions between Kinder and School. Trauma-informed, inclusive design aligned with VSBA Universal Design Principles enhances indoor-outdoor learning, accessibility and wellbeing, inspiring refurbishment of the existing facility to incorporate key features of the new spaces.

Photography by Emily Bartlett