Community Self-Help Centre and day-support facility on Izabelli Street in Warsaw

Description

A Community Self-Help Centre in Warsaw and a Day-Support Facility for children with intellectual disabilities — two independent institutions — share one address in this social care building on Izabelli Street in Żoliborz. The client is the Capital City of Warsaw, Żoliborz District. The three-storey building of approx. 1,370 m² usable floor area comprises four parts linked by corridors, so its scale matches the neighbouring single-family houses without overwhelming the street. Part A, with its own entrance and vertical circulation core for privacy, houses the Community Self-Help Centre for people with mental illness and sheltered flats. Part B is the centre for people with intellectual and multiple disabilities; a separate wing holds the day-support facility for children and young people. The programme includes therapy rooms, cooking and computer workshops, a quiet room, dining room, laundry and training flats. The building is fully barrier-free: passenger lifts serve every floor, entrances are level, and induction loops for the hard of hearing and a call system complete the fit-out. Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, photovoltaics and extensive green roofs are used, and nearly half the plot remains permeable green space.