COMMENT
Contingency and resilience in healthcare estates
Welcome to the June issue of Health Estate Journal. A few weeks ago, Health Estate Journal had the pleasure
of attending IHEEM’s Wales Regional Conference, Exhibition and Awards Dinner 2026. Held at the International Conference Centre in Newport, Wales (with the Awards Dinner taking place at the nearby Celtic Manor Resort Hotel), the two-day event focused on strengthening healthcare estates to meet evolving challenges through improved planning, innovation, and workforce development. This was my first major event as editor of HEJ, and as such it was a pleasure to connect and network with attendees, putting faces to names and hearing about the challenges and pressures facing estates managers and healthcare engineers – as well as the potential solutions to these issues. One of the keynote speakers at the event was Jacqueline
Totterdell, director general for health and social services and NHS Wales chief executive, who set out the significant service and financial pressures facing the NHS in Wales, with particular reference to the ageing and, in many respects, unfit for purpose healthcare estate. You can read my report on p24. The conference was, of course, also a time for positivity
and recognition, and on p27 we have full details of the winners of this year’s 2026 IHEEM Wales Regional Awards, which were presented at the event’s annual black tie Gala Awards Dinner. Needless to say, the food was excellent!
When it comes to building the healthcare estate of tomorrow, it would not be controversial to insist that these buildings ought to go beyond simply the treatment of illness, and actively promote good health. On p43, Matt Griffiths, health sector director at Kier, explains how, by integrating outdoor spaces, healthy choices, education, and co-located non-clinical services – and enabled by bold leadership and capital project reform – we can actually embed prevention into healthcare settings. While we wait for these new hospitals and health centres to materialise, making better use of the existing estate has never been more important. On p63, Tony Booty, director at Abintra, explains how measures such as environmental monitoring and strategic estate planning can assist healthcare managers in uncovering hidden capacity and improving efficiency. Indeed, on p53, construction consultancy Gleeds’
head of healthcare Andy McNulty and healthcare sector lead (South West) Simon Yeo argue that, at the end of the day, it is the thousands of decisions made every day by estates leaders responding to the operational realities of healthcare that are shaping the future of the NHS estate. It is through events such as IHEEM’s Wales Regional
Conference that estates managers are able to meet and discuss what that future might look like. I hope you enjoy the issue.
It was a pleasure to connect and network with attendees, putting faces to names and hearing about the challenges and pressures facing estates managers and healthcare engineers – as well as the potential solutions to these issues
Editor Matt Seex
mattseex@stepcomms.com
Business Manager Sheehan Edmonds
sheehanedmonds@stepcomms.com
Sales Executive Peter Moon
petermoon@stepcomms.com
Published on behalf of: The Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management, 2 Abingdon House, Cumberland Business Centre, Northumberland Road, Portsmouth, Hants PO5 1DS
Reg Charity No 257133 ©2026: The Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management UK
Publisher Geoff King
geoffking@stepcomms.com
Publishing Director Trevor Moon
trevormoon@stepcomms.com
Journal Administration Katy Cockle
katycockle@stepcomms.com
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Neither the Institute nor the Publisher is able to take any responsibility for views expressed by contributors. Editorial views are not necessarily shared by the Institute. Readers are expressly advised that while the contents of this publication are believed to be accurate, correct and complete, no reliance should be placed upon its contents as being applicable to any particular circumstances. Any advice, opinion or information contained is published only on the footing that The Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management, its servants or agents and all contributors to this publication shall be under no liability whatsoever in respect of its contents.
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www.healthestatejournal.com June 2026 Health Estate Journal 5
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