| A blueprint for health projects |
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A Shropshire architect has laid down a blueprint for the design of healthcare projects after winning a £200,000 contract to overhaul a London hospital. Vic Johnson, who runs Bridgnorth based Johnson Design Partnership, saw first hand the need to make hospitals and healthcare centres more in keeping with real life after spending weeks in and out of hospital while his wife Amanda was treated for a life threatening brain haemorrhage. He spent the time developing a blueprint to provide hospitals with a mix of medical services, outstanding care facilities and High Street retail outlets, and turned his vision into reality after his practice beat major national rivals to secure a £200,000 contract to complete the internal refurbishment of the transport and discharge unit at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, London. “Hospitals can be a soulless place and we wanted to look at ways where we could use the latest design techniques and clever space utilisation to create environments that are welcoming, aid recovery and also provide essential facilities to visitors,” said Mr Johnson, who founded the company in 2001. “We also looked at the commercial element and how we could create opportunities for High Street retailers to be based within these buildings. This not only improves the visitor experience, but also offers major commercial benefits to hospitals and centres that are increasingly needing to become more self sufficient. He continued: “The NHS Trust behind the Royal Free really bought into this vision and we have already been asked to complete further feasibility studies into units for medical physics, CAMHs and paediatric care, the boardroom and the main concourse. Approved “In fact, we are amongst a select group of architects approved to complete work for the hospital, who predict an annual capital spend of more than £20 million.” The firm has received a raft of national inquiries for its services, and as a result has launched a second office in Bloomsbury, London. The company is also extremely busy in its traditional home of the Midlands after completing a 10-bed nursing home extension in Tipton and undertaking feasibility studies for the Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Trust and the Smethwick Wellbeing Centre. Johnson Design Partnership is on course to celebrate its tenth birthday in style, with turnover set to hit a record high of £330,000. In addition to work in healthcare, it also boasts a proven track record in “grand designs”, commercial and industrial, education, retail and landmark infrastructure projects. |
