Stobhill Hospital Ward Extension

In addressing the design for New Stobhill Hospital’s Ward Extension, we have made a deliberate effort to plan the building as a simple, clearly expressed form. The aim is to achieve a layout which is not only ‘legible’, but will derive much of its architectural quality from the careful consideration and detailing of the external skin.

The three storey / 6000m2 Ward Extension, to the New Stobhill Hospital, contains:
• An OPD Clinic designed along similar lines to those in the main ambulatory care hospital.
• 12 “23 Hour” beds to extend the use of the existing Day Surgery to include more complex operations and an evening list.
• A small education/seminar suite available for meetings, conferences etc. This is a centrally bookable facility serving the wider NHS area.
• Two 24 bed rehabilitation wards. Half of the beds are provided in single rooms and half in multi-bed wards to enable a choice of accommodation for the expected age and condition of patients.

The treatment of the external envelope has been limited to a simple palette of materials, namely – pale render and glass. In doing this the emphasis for creating an environment of quality lies in the successful use of natural light to animate both the internal and external spaces.

Externally the most striking feature of the design is perhaps the window bays introduced to the single bed rooms. These provide strong modelling to the facades, giving a meaningful contrast to the main hospital building by means of a clear expression of the different function of the space.

Day and Dining Rooms are separated from the circulation and each other only by a timber screen. The screen not only gives a sense of privacy, but allows casual observation from the staff base nearby.

The court, in contrast to the main building’s timber courtyards, is finished in an off white render. This is a direct response to the adjacent accommodation, where people may be resident for a number of weeks. It is felt that the quantity of light is of major importance and will have a more beneficial effect that the softness sought in the main building by the use of timber cladding.

The court itself is landscaped with birch trees, fine gravel with limited ground cover, and paving, giving a variety of surfaces and the opportunity for a meandering walk, with benches at intervals supporting plaques with short poems relating to a woodland walk.

Images taken by Michael Wolchover.