The Richard Desmond Children's Eye Centre, London
- Client: Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Principal designer: Penoyre & Prasad
- Principal engineer: Price & Myers
- Principal contractor: Balfour Beatty Construction
- Contract value: £12.3 million
About the project
The brief for the Richard Desmond Children's Eye Centre was to provide the best children's eye hospital in the world - without it looking like a hospital.
The difficulties posed by a restricted site within Moorfields Conservation Area between the existing Moorfields' Eye Hospital and UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, the internal layout of clinics and necessary connections to existing operating theatres and research facilities were reconciled by designing an eight-storey building.
The building rises above a largely glazed entrance platform with café, shops and, further into the building, areas for surgical patients and their relatives. A slot of space, crossed by bridges, runs up the building and introduces a sense of space and scale. A translucent, coloured play pod in the waiting area bursts through the floor above. The main outpatient waiting area appears externally as a projecting bay clad in bright orange, and circular glazed openings set into the east elevation provide views at different levels.
The striking design of the eye centre provides world-class facilities in an environment that is bright, welcoming and reassuring for children and their parents.
Energy efficiency has been maximised. External louvers, together with high-performance glazing, minimises solar gain. Emphasis has been placed on natural daylight, supplemented by low-energy fluorescent lighting where necessary. Sustainable materials, including timber from sustainable sources, have been used wherever possible.
The judges said: 'A first-class investment by the NHS'.