Leading architect, design, and masterplanning practice, FWP’s specialist mental health team is working with Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust to ‘transform’ its Health-Based Places of Safety (HBPoS).
The work to revamp the Trust’s ‘S136 suites’ – where someone needing urgent mental health care can be assessed for onward treatment planning – is now entering its final phase. The Trust is investing £1.3m in improving and expanding its S136 services, and FWP has been commissioned to deliver major alterations and refurbishments to facilities across three hospitals. The first two phases of the project are now complete. The S136 suite at Fairfield Hospital in Bury has been refurbished, and work at Tameside Hospital has seen an existing suite revamped, and a new second facility created. The third phase, involving the refurbishment of the S136 suite at The Royal Oldham Hospital, is underway, with work on site set to be completed in March by contractor John Turner Construction.
Preston-headquartered FWP has spearheaded the project, providing architectural and interior design, as well as project management and principal designer services. The practice, which also has offices in Manchester and London, says it has ‘a wealth of experience’ in the mental healthcare sector.
The new-look suites have been designed to create a more calming environment for patients, and each has an external garden area they can securely use. The suites’ ‘carefully created remodelling’ also includes ‘soothing’ nature-inspired artwork. The Trust has worked with its key partners including Greater Manchester Police, North West Ambulance Services, and local councils, on the transformation project.
David Simmons, FWP senior associate partner, said: “A Section 136 suite should be a comfortable, safe, and secure environment where people can receive a mental health assessment and develop an ongoing treatment plan focused on their individual needs. The suites have to be comfortable, and safe and secure, for people who may be vulnerable and exhibit unpredictable behaviours. We have worked with the Trust on the layout and design to promote feelings of calmness and serenity, and create outdoor spaces which allow fresh air and a change of environment.
“The use of natural light, carefully considered colour choices, and the temperature and air quality, all add to the sense of calm we have looked to create. We’ve also incorporated monitoring equipment, implementing the latest technologies into the suites. Equally, the facilities have been designed to ensure the safety and security of both the service-users and staff.”
This S136 suite project is the latest in several important mental health projects delivered by FWP for NHS Trusts across the North West of England. The practice led on a recent project to create a new home for child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in Stockport for Pennine Care – designed to help children in their recovery, and offer support to the children, carers, and parents, with conditions such as anxiety, autism, depression, psychosis, self-harm, ADHD, and ASD. The FWP team also created a Mental Health Urgent Assessment Centre at Blackpool Victoria Hospital, developed to support people attending the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department in a mental health crisis.
Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, which provides a range of services including secondary mental healthcare, also appointed FWP to deliver an NHS rehabilitation centre at Wesham, on the Fylde Coast, which focuses on helping people’s recovery from complex mental health problems. In addition, the practice’s specialist mental health team successfully delivered the redesign of the trust’s Skylark Centre in Preston. This rehabilitation unit at Royal Preston Hospital is now helping patients recovering from mental health conditions regain the skills associated with day-to-day living.