Possilpark Health & Care Centre

The Health Centre is at the heart of the wider area masterplan known as Saracen Exchange. This is the regeneration programme which has been developed and managed by Glasgow North Regeneration Agency. This building represents the first phase of this development and it is anticipated that it will be the anchor for further development of the wider area.

The scheme is a replacement for the nearby existing health centre which is dilapidated and deemed unfit for the provision of modern healthcare services. The new building integrates contemporary facilities for a number of medical practices together with dentistry and social services.

The design is a carefully considered response to both the building user and the urban context of the main shopping street in the Possilpark community. The building functions around a main atrium that incorporates both public circulation and patient waiting.
To respond to its context the building maintains the local scale and forms part of the existing street line. The elevation treatment had two specific characteristics to engage with. The building had to maintain the solid integrity of the brick and stone buildings along Saracen Street and it also had to engage with the user by developing a warm, open and welcoming entrance off the street.

The Urban Glass cladding and blue brick accentuates the solid characteristics of Saracen Street while the curtain walling highlights the internal atrium and public space within the building. The ruby red glazing panels break down the extent of the glazing on this elevation but also generate elements of privacy for the users along the street elevation. Along the second floor of the atrium we introduced solar fins clad in the urban glass panels to control the internal temperature of the fully glazed atrium. The use of cladding panels on these fins allowed us to maintain the rhythm of solidity of this upper floor as you approach the health and care centre.