In the short term, a participatory process aims to incorporate the concerns of the various user groups and the relevant government agencies into the needs assessment program. The involvement and participation of the school community are fundamental components of construction projects carried out as part of Berlin’s school construction initiative.
The purpose of the process is to jointly develop educational and spatial concepts with the school’s future user groups and to derive recommendations for further planning based on these concepts. At the same time, a stated goal of the participatory process is to increase general acceptance of the planned project, as well as to create a platform for communication between policymakers, administrators, and user groups so that the various interests can be presented and weighed collectively.
It is essential to involve the future user groups early on in the process of defining site-specific needs. The participatory process gives interested parties and those affected the opportunity to contribute to the spatial and organizational design of the school. As part of this process, they are given the opportunity to contribute ideas for implementation.
