BAM has been asked by Betsi Cadwaladr University (BCU) Health Board to develop the detailed design for constructing a new inpatient adult and older persons’ mental health unit at Glan Clwyd Hospital near Rhyl in North Wales.
The Welsh Government on 10 October approved the Health Board’s outline plans, and the scheme can now proceed to a full assessment. BAM says its involvement ‘builds on the excellent track record’ of schemes it has developed together with BCU, including a cancer treatment centre and neonatal intensive care unit.
The £84.5 million, 63-bed mental health facility would replace the existing care and support services presently provided at the hospital’s Ablett Unit, and at the Bryn Hesketh inpatient older persons’ mental health facility in Colwyn Bay. The plans include a 14-bed older persons’ mental health ward with en-suite facilities and improved recreational spaces, plus a 13-bed dementia care assessment unit. Provision will be made for families and carers to stay with loved ones overnight. There will also be a secure courtyard, en-suite facilities to all bedrooms, and recreational and therapy spaces, plus two 16-bed adult wards, each with a de-stimulation area – providing a safe nursing environment for high acuity patients, and preventing the need for transfer to other mental health units. An assessment suite to enable suitable patients to be moved from the Emergency Department, and more outdoor and therapeutic space and better staff and family facilities, will also feature.
The new building will provide acute inpatient mental health care to adults from Conwy, Denbighshire, and parts of Flintshire, with the new Dementia Assessment Unit harnessing the latest evidence on dementia supportive environments, and featuring a dedicated crisis assessment area.
The project has been awarded to BAM under the NHS Building for Wales framework., and,
subject to final approvals, construction is expected to start in 2024 and complete in 2026.
BAM says sustainability will be at the design’s heart. Biophilic design features will include air-source heat pumps and roof-mounted photovoltaic cells.
Teresa Owen, Executive director responsible for BCUHB’s Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Division, said: “This news will be welcomed by the many patients, carers, staff, and partner organisations, who have helped shape these ambitious proposals. It represents a significant step forward in our improvement journey, as we work towards delivering a mental health unit at Glan Clwyd Hospital that is fit-for-purpose. Work will now begin in earnest to complete a detailed and fully costed full business case. We look forward to sharing our proposals with Welsh Government, and the many other stakeholders with an interest in this much-needed development.”
Approving the outline case, Health Minister, Eluned, Morgan said: “It is vital that there are fit-for-purpose mental health facilities across Wales to deliver high quality care for people needing urgent help during crises.