Faced with a failing cohort of socially deprived students and outdated school buildings, three Maidstone secondary schools turned to Gensler for innovation. Part of the solution, forged through ongoing interaction with key stakeholders — the schools, their students and communities — is an agile, technology-rich space that quickly adapts to a range of learning scenarios. A temporary prototype of the learning plaza now occupies a renovated school gymnasium. While serving as a test bed for the concept, the plaza also provides modern facilities and supports new ways of learning for 90 adolescent Year 8 students. Since the prototype’s debut, attendance levels have risen 90 percent.