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The new Maison de l’Enfance is located in the municipality of Bois-Guillaume, near Rouen in Normandy. As the first public facility delivered as part of a major town-centre redevelopment project, it sits within a changing context and proposes a model of sustainable building for the community.

The building is designed to sit harmoniously within its surroundings, with no “back side”. It takes the form of a circle, bringing together a logistics hub, an administrative hub (municipal reception), an ALSH children’s centre and municipal offices. This centralised geometry allows all façades to be treated with equal care, in dialogue with the surrounding public and landscaped spaces.

The structural organisation is simple and rational: beneath a wide circular green roof, all public and logistical functions are sheltered. On the ground floor, a large central patio becomes an open-air room, bringing light, views and transparency to the interior spaces. On the roof level, a rectangular volume accommodates the administrative functions.

The structure is formed by low-carbon concrete columns and slabs produced in recycling facilities located at the river port of Rouen. The façades, built in a timber frame clad in chestnut, complement this system by combining material warmth, thermal performance and a low environmental footprint.

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