18/07/17
St Michael’s Hospice scoops award for being West of England’s ‘Most Inclusive Building’
The LABC’s ‘Most Inclusive Building’ award recognises buildings that have gone above and beyond usual design standards in ensuring that they are accessible to and meet the needs of all of their users.
The project team, including St Michael’s Hospice, building contractor Speller Metcalfe and Hereford architects Architype Ltd, had to evidence how they had successfully incorporated the needs of a wide range of users into the design of the building in order to win the award.
The project involved the original hospice building being repurposed into a day-care facility and the construction of a new training suite, office spaces and a high-spec timber framed in-patient building.
The new building was built to accommodate 20 private, en-suite rooms for in-patients, grouped into four social clusters, with each sharing a lounge area and access to a private terrace where patients are able to enjoy views of the Herefordshire countryside.
The works also included the development of a new range of integrated services including quiet rooms, group meeting areas, therapy facilities and a newly constructed educational facility allowing for specialist in-house training.
Des O’Neill, managing director at Speller Metcalfe said: ‘We are pleased to have been recognised once again for our inclusive approach, having won the same award last year for a scheme providing accommodation for students with disabilities in Cheltenham.
‘At St Michael’s Hospice we worked hard to achieve a wholly inclusive space that allows patients privacy and dignity but also provides much-needed areas for patients to socialise and interact with one another and their loved ones.’
Speller Metcalfe were also shortlisted for ‘Best Public Service Building’ and ‘Best Large Commercial Project’, both for St Michael’s Hospice.