Donna Monaghan from Form and Function Building Design was the driving force behind the bold new campus for Warrnambool’s Koala Childcare and Early Learning Centre, and the impressive project that saw a series of heritage buildings at St Joseph’s Parish restored back to their Gothic glory. 

The two projects have been selected in the Association’s 23rd annual design awards and will be voted on by the public.

Mrs Monaghan said the new Koala Childcare campus was created to accommodate an extra 60 children, mainly for kindergarten. 

She said the plan was to create a connection between the old and new campuses. 

“We wanted the new building to link back to the old campus and be sophisticated, but still playful,” she said. 

“I really wanted to avoid those rainbow coloured exteriors, but I still wanted it to be fun.”

Ms Monaghan said her favourite part of the design was an external brick wall similar to the facade of the centre’s original 100-year-old building. 

“We used a pattern that ties the wall back to the original campus but also holds it’s own style,” she said. 

“The design is a contemporary take on the old building and a great collaboration between the engineers and brick layers that made it happen.” 

The external brick wall has also been nominated for an Australian Think Brick award. 

Meanwhile, works on the St Joseph’s Parish saw Mrs Monaghan and her team conduct significant investigations into the history of the old buildings.

“Through researching and discovering we were able to determine some of the original interior fabrics that had been covered up for decades,”  Mrs Monaghan said. 

“We then set about working on what we wanted to keep and showcase. It was really quite testing as there was a real risk of not knowing what was really behind the wall. We had a couple of incidents where we really had to think on our feet to make changes.” 

Mrs Monaghan said the ultimate pleasure was walking through the buildings during the construction process and seeing what had been unveiled. 

“We had original Gothic windows that had been blocked up for decades and it was an absolute joy to see them light up places that always should have been lit,” she said. 

Mrs Monaghan is part of the 25 per cent of female registered building designers. 

Building Designers Association of Victoria chief executive Kate Bell said it was great to see more women putting forward their work for peer review.

Voting is now open at bdav.org.au and closes 5pm on Tuesday July 24.

The people’s choice award will be presented on Saturday August 4 at the National Gallery of Victoria.