After 2.5 years in a former care home, De Parel school returns to its renovated building in Roeselare

After two and a half years of lessons in a former care facility, all 66 pupils and the staff of De Parel have returned to their renovated school at De Zilten in Roeselare.

The special primary school moved to the Westerlinde site along Westlaan while major renovation work took place. Director Jo Degrande said the old building had deteriorated and was not suited to the school’s pupils. Setting up a school in a former hospital proved challenging, he said, but the temporary arrangement allowed teaching to continue until the return became possible.

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Our building at De Zilten was worn out and not adapted to our target group.

The building at De Zilten was completely stripped and rebuilt with the pupils’ needs in mind. Changes include adapted lighting, suspended ceilings to improve acoustics, technological upgrades and more ergonomic facilities. The school says the renovations create more places where pupils can withdraw and regain their calm.

One of the most distinctive spaces is the former chapel, renamed the “chapel of the senses.” It is being equipped with sensory facilities, including a waterbed room. The school says calm remains the central purpose of the redesigned space and that the new building now provides many features it previously lacked.

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It was a challenge to set up a school in a former hospital, but we succeeded. We were nevertheless very eager to return to our familiar, now adapted site.