AN UPLIFTING HEALTHCARE PACKAGE 

TRILUX lighting scheme supports a biophilic design approach for patient recovery and helps create a calm and natural environment for patients, staff, and visitors.

Hundreds of thousands of people in England will benefit from new NHS facilities and services as the UK embarks on its biggest hospital building programme in a generation.

Photos: Amphitype

The government is committed to helping the NHS build back better from COVID-19 and one of its main goals will be to deliver on the manifesto commitment of 40 new hospitals across England by 2030, backed by an initial £3.7 billion of investment. These will provide:

• Better care for patients
• An improved working environment for staff
• And help the NHS reach its net zero carbon ambition

The Heatherwood hospital in Ascot (25 miles west of London) is a fore runner in the new hospital landscape. A new world-class facility it offers planned, non-emergency care to patients in Berkshire and its surrounding areas.

Designed by BDP for Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust, the £98 million hospital emphasises both patient and staff mental and physical wellbeing.

The 11,500 sqm new building (located at the rear of the current hospital) is part of the Trust’s strategy to double the number of patients visiting Heatherwood each year to 168,000 over the next decade. The site includes six state-of-the-art operating theatres, outpatient and diagnostic facilities for orthopaedics, cardiology, radiology, lithotripsy, physiotherapy, and orthodontics, all set in a contemporary, sustainable facility bordered by woodland.

BDP’s design for the new building exploits the hospital’s stunning natural setting to maximise the wellbeing benefits that access to nature can provide. Its design draws in the landscape to enhance the building’s links with nature. For example, patient bedrooms have views across the treetops and access to outdoor terraces. The café space offers woodland views. There is a sizeable biodiverse pond area and nearby nature walks. This biophilic design approach supports patient recovery and creates a calm and natural environment for patients, staff, and visitors.

Photos: Amphitype

Sustainability has been fundamental to the project, with renewable energy from a solar farm covering a large section of the hospital’s roof and a robust, sustainable urban drainage system installed under the car park.

The themes of sustainability and efficiency continued through to the lighting design. TRILUX was the energy-efficient lighting partner for the complete project, from the downlights in the bathrooms to linear fittings in the corridors, weatherproof and industrial lighting for the back of house areas, external wall lights, and the specialist lighting in the theatres.

Uplifting lighting design

As the emphasis on health care designs shifts to a more holistic approach, attractive designs are becoming more important. TRILUX’s Liventy Vision recessed LED panels are installed in all six theatres, printed with works of art inspired by nature, providing a feature to focus on while undergoing a stressful scan or treatment.

Additionally, the Sanesca wall light has been integrated into patient areas. Both appealing and purist, the looks of the Sanesca LED blend harmoniously into patient rooms. And thanks to a high flexibility, uniform lighting concept, it can be implemented over different areas. The luminaire combines indirect distribution and general light with direct, glare-free reading light to support progressive and efficient patient care.

Reception areas, corridors, and offices throughout the building rely on a combination of LC60, Polaron IQ, Arimo, Amatris for energy-efficient, comfortable lighting that exudes calm and tranquillity.

Giorgos Kourtelis, BDP Senior Designer, “We worked with TRILUX on Heatherwood and their technical support throughout the project was fantastic, particularly in the latter stages of design. They offer a comprehensive range of fittings needed to cover the project needs and hit the numbers commercially.”

Products

• LC60
• Polaron IQ
• Arimo
• Amatris
• Sanesca
• Fidesca
• 74R
• Oleveon Fit
• SncPoint
• Liventy Vision
• Acuro
• Ridos
• Skeo
• Nextrema

Project team
End client: Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust
Architects: BDP
Main Contractor: Kier