ESTATE UTILISATION
into three flexible zones – a welcome point, a central activity space, and a band of working spaces along the bright perimeter wall. Re-use and retention were key strategies in keeping to the budget and minimising both disruption and material use. The canteen space already had large windows along one side, making it light and bright, and a good quality ceiling that could be cleaned and retained. The original brief also included the conversion of the
kitchen into meeting rooms, family rooms, and private consultation space, but following numerous investigations, this was removed from the project scope, instead encouraging more efficient use of existing meeting rooms elsewhere in the centre. The activity zone was central, and so we ensured that it could fit 40-50 people. It has a projector and pull-down screen, and chairs that can be set up for presentations, talks, or screenings. They can be easily rearranged or stacked and moved behind the counter to make space when required. Three pairs of high-backed sofas create private
huddles for team meetings and small gatherings. Each of the chairs has a plug and a USB socket, which allows for use of electronic devices and quiet working, but the environment remains relaxed. Acoustic screens double up as pin boards, and light blue curtains screen the meeting space and the activity area to give privacy and aid concentration. The ambition was to offer a variety of settings that can be intuitively used for the task at hand.
Engagement sessions In engagement sessions, the idea of retaining and re- using the existing counter position sparked enthusiasm. It is a natural place to gather – where the chatter always happens. By recreating a workbench along the line of the canteen counter, we have retained some of that energy, and given the room an easy focus for arriving visitors. This workbench can be used for activities such as teaching, making, or as a co-working area for staff. The lower ceiling above the counter, and dimmable lights, lend it the comfortable draw of a kitchen table, encouraging people to gather around it. Nicki Glencross said: “The work desk is beautiful: bright yellow, and absolutely ideal for sewing machines, sharing IT skills, and crafting. It’s been designed for wheelchair users, and is the perfect height for ‘doing’.” Although located in a health centre, Ashfield Community Hub is not a clinical space. Martin Meltzer said: “The hub was designed to be very welcoming and homely, eschewing a clinical feel for a more attractive and inspirational space, facilitating visitors’ engagement with social prescribers and activities.” We wanted to differentiate it from the institutional feeling
of the doctor’s surgery. To define this ‘welcoming and homely’ atmosphere we used carefully chosen colour, furniture, and cues from nature. During our engagement sessions, we tested a simple, dynamic, blue and yellow colour palette. We wanted to move away from the orange highlights of the former canteen, with something subtly uplifting and decidedly non-institutional. Pale pastel highlights on the windows make it feel homely, against a soft, terracotta red for the upholstery. The rich blue of the walls and floor is striking, but ultimately the whole comes together to create a calming and comfortable space. We included established, but easy-to-care-for pot plants – ferns, snake plants, yucca trees – to support the wellbeing of people using the hub. Nicki Glencross says: “What they did that I think is lovely is all the plants that are in there. It’s not just the health benefits of plants filtering the air in a space, but the plants are visually very calming. That actively has a positive effect on your mental health, and will support the services being offered.”
The Wellington Way Community Garden at the Wellington Way Health Centre in East London.
Natural patterns on the glass doors mimic the plants
within, and the three areas of the hub have now been named Fern, Yucca, and Lily, reflecting the plants chosen for the space. Together, our ideas for creating a flexible, adaptable, and welcoming space for a very broad range of activities mark Ashfield Community Hub as a different kind of approach to supporting health outcomes. Its evolving role in supporting wellbeing will grow and change as the requirements of those using it will change, positively influencing the health of those who use it.
Social prescribing for social good Social prescribing projects like Ashfield are a win-win solution. They make better use of the existing NHS estate, provide good facilities to be used by partner organisations directly available to those who need them, and support people to make positive changes to their own lives. They will ultimately have a positive effect on the health of those that get to use them. Ashfield Community Hub will fill a gap in services to
help residents take control of their health and wellbeing. By designing a space that it is a pleasure to spend time in, but is also easy to access and part of the wider health and wellbeing infrastructure in Nottinghamshire like this, we help people to take ownership and pride in their local community, improve their own health and wellbeing, and follow opportunities for personal growth and development. Nicki Glencross said: “I hope it ends up being a space
where people feel comfortable and welcomed, no matter what the reason for the group they are there for. I want people to leave feeling ‘That was amazing; I want to go back; I enjoyed being there, and it made me feel good.’ Whether it’s a group or an individual, enabling that to continue is the primary purpose of the Community Hub.”
References 1 NHS Property Services celebrates milestone delivery of 100 Social Prescribing Sites across the country. NHS Property Services, 26 April 2024.
https://tinyurl.com/2wdy8fer
2 Polley MJ, Dixon M, Hopewell D, Fleming J. Report of the Annual Social Prescribing Network Conference, January 2016.
https://tinyurl.com/2cw9hfnj
Alasdair Ben Dixon
Alasdair Ben Dixon is a chartered architect and Partner at Collective Works – a practice striving to create responsible and beautiful architecture. He says he has a long-held commitment to find a better way for architects to balance the needs of the wider world with those of clients and stakeholders. He ‘understands the challenges and aspirations of both third sector and public sector organisations’, and has collaborated with a range of charities, community interest companies, advocacy groups, and the NHS, ‘to deliver projects that engage, care, and empower’.
October 2024 Health Estate Journal 53
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