A New Wave of Community Hospitals

Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust’s new community hospital will efficiently alleviate pressure on acute hospitals and provide integrated care systems that will transform local health provision.

The new hospital in the Forest of Dean will replace two older buildings (Dilke Memorial Hospital and Lydney Community Hospital) and will modernise the infrastructure to allow the NHS to provide sustainable high-quality in-patient and outpatient services for many years to come.

The design brings together a range of services: local urgent care/minor injury units and out of hours service, x-ray, radiology and ultrasound services, consulting and treatment rooms for outpatient clinics, a children’s clinic area, endoscopy suite, clinic space for dentistry and/or podiatry and a purpose-built therapy gym for rehabilitation. As well as community areas within the hospital e.g. a group room and shop, the skate park (currently on the land) is being relocated nearby with other local improvements making the new hospital a central focus within the community.

Kevin Adams from Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust will outline the extensive consultation and business case for replacing the two outdated hospitals with one new build using innovative features for the best possible sustainable local care, efficiency and cost control.

Abz Randera, Architect from ONE Creative environments (ONE) that received Architectural Practice of the Year at last year’s Healthcare Estates awards, will share details of the design which creatively overcomes site challenges and includes a range of measures following the Pandemic to maintain infection control standards. Abz will also outline how sustainability is central to the design supporting the NHS’ ambition of net zero carbon emissions with the design aiming for an Excellent BREEAM rating to help reduce energy consumption, carbon and ongoing costs.