Sheppard Robson’s exemplar design for a new £75 million surgical centre for Taunton & Somerset NHS Trust has received outline planning consent. The design will act as the Public Sector Comparator and will form the basis of the tender invitation documents for the PFI procurement process.
The new centre at Musgrove Park Hospital meets complex adjacency requirements by responding to the sloping site and provides direct connection to existing facilities on the hospital campus. The resultant design wraps around a sunken landscaped garden and comprises of a six-storey building defining the entrance to the centre and a three-storey crescent wing enclosing the garden. The use of natural light, the predominance of external views exploiting the vistas across the surrounding landscape and natural ventilation, all contribute to a design which creates an environment where patients and process are a priority.
The six-storey building houses two upper levels of 128 beds in four wards, 50% of which are single occupancy. The lower levels house seven theatres directly serviced by a plant room, the main entrance and a restaurant. The crescent wing, to the north, houses clinical departments including a combined emergency unit and surgical investigation unit, and ITU and HDU wards which overlook the landscaped garden, tiered to create an area open to visitors and a more private area for patients.
