ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN
spaces difficult, and create an unlikely conflict between health and wellbeing. Interestingly, almost all Victorian asylums featured large recreation halls, and even ballrooms or theatres; spaces that we no longer have the budget for, but which should be a reminder of the wellbeing benefits of social interaction. COVID-19 further highlighted the fact that during times of crisis people like to be together. It is our responsibility to work within any current constraints, look back, learn lessons, and move forward with a holistic view and a positive lens so we can support people in getting well again. There is encouraging progress in some parts of the country. In Wales, the Well- being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 has championed and encouraged that way of thinking, mandating public bodies to consider the long-term impact of their decisions on future generations. This is already having a considerable influence on how mental health facilities are designed. The UK Government came under pressure in 2021 to follow suit, culminating in the Well-being of Future Generations Bill being presented, which is currently on its third reading. This is a signal for the need for fresh thinking, and more engagement and collaboration.
Grange University Hospital inpatient unit Our Cardiff studio team worked on the design of the new Specialist Inpatient Service Unit for Mental Health at Grange University Hospital in Wales, which is based around the ‘recovery model’ of care, combining a number of complementary services that work together to surround service-users with everything they need to be able to have a more normalised pathway to recovery and rehabilitation within a community setting. This project included looking beyond pure function for today’s needs, and instead towards a more sustainable and forward-thinking wellbeing model, very much in line with the aims behind the Welsh Well-being of Future Generations Act, which calls for more holistic thinking about how any intervention may impact society in the future, not only by reimagining what a mental health unit looks and feels like, but also by delivering environmental benefits.
‘Rings of recovery’ At the heart of the new unit at the Grange is a community hub, designed around ‘rings of recovery’ that mirror the healing journey – progressing from more private spaces on the periphery, towards more community-facing services (including a mental health drop-in centre), with access to therapeutic garden spaces, and views of the surrounding trees and agricultural land. Near the main entrance is a café that will be run by the service-users, and will be accessible to the public. Again, this removes the ‘barriers’ and stigma associations of mental health by creating welcoming, warm places that encourage
THE NETWORK | AUGUST 2023
Arcadis IBI says the Wellbeing Hub at Park View in Cardiff ‘will play a key role in enhancing residents’ wellness in the region, and add much-needed healthcare resources as part of a prevention-focused, integrated healthcare strategy’.
people in. The therapy spaces, meanwhile, are called ‘therapy villages’, rather than the more clinical ‘wards’, and in fact the building will sit within a wider mixed-use masterplan, further normalising mental health services within a community context. As care models evolve and mental health needs increase, we need mental healthcare facilities that meet the requirements of modern healthcare, centred around design that supports health and wellbeing. By understanding user journeys and feelings, and making design interventions based on that, we have a huge opportunity to change the status quo, creating welcoming, safe, and appealing environments where everything from the colours, noise levels, and light, are designed to have a positive effect on how users react to and feel about their surroundings.
Don’t forget staff and families’ needs
It is critical to remember the needs of care staff and visitors, along with resident and patient comfort. Family members need a space that is separate from a patient’s room in order to relax or speak with relatives, and staff areas should also be designed with maximum natural light, fresh air and views of nature, to keep stress low, and energy levels high. Many healthcare
Karen Flatt
Karen Flatt, Studio director & Mental Health lead at Arcadis IBI Group, is an experienced healthcare architect, and leads Arcadis’s team of mental health design professionals. During her career, she has worked across feasibility and concept studies through scheme design, detail, and production information, to overseeing operations on site. As Project director, she has also successfully designed projects across diagnostic and treatment centres, community hospitals, mother and baby units, and in child health and paediatrics. Passionate about adding value during the concept development process, and as a specialist in mental health design, she has a profound knowledge of the unique requirements of both adolescent and adult service-users, as well as mental healthcare professionals.
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staff also struggled a great deal during and post-pandemic, so it is important to consider the wellbeing of every single potential user of a building, and cultivate a supportive environment for all. This includes dedicated spaces away from wards for staff, with changing facilities and lockers, TVs, comfortable seating, kitchen areas, and, wherever possible, dedicated outside spaces too. At a time of higher-than-ever demand
for mental health services, and a stretched NHS, good design can go a long way towards supporting the sector in reaching its aims. The mental healthcare facilities of today are not the utilitarian and isolated ‘asylums’ of the past, where mental health was dealt with out of sight. As a society, we are removing the stigma, and breaking down those barriers, misconceptions, and old-fashioned approaches to mental health, and instead working to integrate it more into the everyday as part of the very fabric of the community. We can use what we’ve learned, evolve, and innovate, to create attractive and patient-oriented buildings for healing and wellbeing, whose value can go far beyond their original intended function, making more accessible and fit-for-purpose mental healthcare that can help tackle healthcare challenges both within specialist facilities and the community.
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Arcadis IBI
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