Paving the way for future rehabilitation services

The award-winning redevelopment of an existing but long unused NHS site in Wesham, on the Fylde Coast, has created a modern new rehabilitation service for Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust. The model focuses on empowering the service-user to gain or recover their confidence and skills. Architect, design, and masterplanning practice, FWP, was appointed to deliver the £9.4 m centre. Daniel Thompson, Partner and Healthcare lead, and James Halsall, Associate, discuss their approach to 21st century mental health design, and the FWP team’s work.

The existing hospital building in Wesham, a small town sitting inland some eight miles from Blackpool’s famous Golden Mile, had stood empty and derelict for more than eight years when the decision was made to bring it back to life. The aim was to refurbish the NHS building to create a home for a new community-facing rehabilitation service. The repurposed Wesham Rehabilitation Centre building – which earlier this year received the Design in Mental Health 2022 award for ‘Project of the Year – Refurbishment’ – includes a modern, timber-clad extension to the front that has created a welcoming and engaging entrance. 

The whole facility has been designed to help bridge the gap between acute treatment and re-integrating people back into the community. The service it hosts offers a new mental health pathway that sits between acute care and community living. The Trust hopes that the Wesham centre will pave the way for future mental health rehabilitation services across the region. The service it offers is having a positive impact on existing service-users, and will benefit new service-users who need a different kind of support.