The Warwick Academy

The Warwick Academy, founded in 1662 is considered to be the longest continually operating school in the Western World, and is well known for its high standards of Academic Excellence.

Located on 22 acres in the heart of Bermuda, the school serves both Primary and Secondary School students, as well as an International Baccalaureate program of more than 100 students.

Over the years, and particularly, over the last half century, the school has been expanded through multiple phases of construction to provide additional athletic, arts, and academic facilities. These expansions have been typically undertaken in reaction to an immediate need with no long term Master Plan along with guiding principles for future facilities. The result is a building complex which lacks clear delineation between the various departments, complicated circulation with various floor levels that hamper accessibility, and no central focus or sense of arrival.

+VG Architects in association with local architects Botelho Wood Architects were commissioned by Warwick Academy to lead a design study to examine options to implement the Academy’s current expansion plans:

• New Learning Commons
• New secondary wing with eight new classrooms
• New International Baccalaureate centre (22,000 ft2)
• New Performing Arts Centre (16,000 ft2)
• New multi-purpose rooms for Primary and Secondary levels
• Improved parking and automobile circulation
• Improved pedestrian circulation
• New 12 unit residential development

Previous expansions at Warwick Academy have typically been undertaken in reaction to an immediate need, without the benefit of a long-term Master Plan. The +VG study provided guiding principles for future facilities, and recommendations to improve the existing campus, with better delineation between various departments, simplification of the circulation and enhanced accessibility. The study examines options to develop a central focus for the campus and create an appropriate sense of arrival at this remarkable institution.