Artful design makes all the difference at state-of-the-art facility

Improving the patient experience is one of the primary objectives of the architects behind Scotland’s newest, hi-tech cancer treatment centre but, as Ray Philpott reveals, taking an unconventional design approach pays dividends From an architectural perspective, designing a radiotherapy-based cancer... View Article

Design in Mental Health: Meeting the challenges together

Whether you are looking at adding new buildings, considering refurbishing existing buildings or ongoing maintenance work Design in Mental Health 2016 is here to help you source information, solutions and ideas. The event consists of the Design in Mental Health... View Article

Versatile timber is a healthy choice

The construction and materials used in mental health facilities are at the core of how care is ultimately delivered – a critical factor with a direct effect on the physical and psychological wellbeing of the end-users. Timber technology can be... View Article

Throwing light on dementia design

Oliver Buchan, head of innovation at Luxonic, argues that, while the lit environment is often an underestimated consideration when creating a dementia-friendly building, relatively simple lighting solutions can be very effective When designing a facility with dementia sufferers in mind... View Article

There’s more to paint than meets the eye

Dulux Trade Brand Manager Daniel Hall explains how selecting the most appropriate paint types and finishes for different spaces within a healthcare building can create enhanced environments for patients and staff A healthcare building is a working facility with a... View Article

Safe furniture design should also be comfortable and stylish

With an increasing focus on creating stimulating mental health environments which nurture recovery, intelligent furniture design is playing a more important role than ever writes Neville Byng, sales and marketing consultant with healthcare furniture specialist Pineapple Contracts In mental health and other challenging... View Article

Focus on the right flooring for dementia

John Mellor, Polyflor’s Market Manager for safety flooring, explains why selecting a floor covering embodying modern, dementia-friendly design principles is increasingly important and spotlights the research behind the thinking According to latest figures from the Alzheimer’s Society, more than 850,000... View Article

How dementia-friendly is your building… really?

Poor research and verification means newly-built healthcare facilities are often wrongly claimed to be dementia-friendly, argues Professor June Andrews, director of the influential Dementia Development Services Centre (DSDC) at the University of Stirling Architects make a difference to how people... View Article

Time to rise to the dementia challenge

Britain can learn from the Japanese experience of designing and building for dementia care, argues Jitesh Patel, Senior Development Manager, Kajima Partnerships. Every three seconds someone somewhere in the world is diagnosed with dementia. In the UK there are over 850,000 people living with... View Article

Suspended Animation – Hotel Hotel, Canberra

Thousands of pieces of reclaimed timber were used to create a “directional vortex” and a monolithic grand staircase for the award-winning Hotel Hotel interior in Canberra. Stephen Cousins reports Walking up the grand staircase and into the lobby of Hotel... View Article

Sales Volumes Pick Up Ahead of Stamp Duty Change

Prime country house prices have been rising for 13 consecutive quarters. Additional findings: Prime country house prices rose by 0.3% in Q1 2016 Annual growth has eased to 2.4%, down from a high of 5.2% in 2014 Sub-£1 million homes... View Article

Mark Robinson comments on today’s Markit/CIPS Construction PMI

Mark Robinson, Scape Group Chief Executive, comments on today’s Markit/CIPS Construction PMI: “This latest barometer of the health of the construction industry brings less than welcome news today, showing that output has not increased since February’s overall ten-month low. The... View Article

March construction PMI – Euler Hermes reaction

Kalpana Padhiar, risk underwriting manager and construction specialist at global credit insurer Euler Hermes, said: “Broad concerns about global growth and the uncertainty surrounding the Brexit referendum, together with the acute skills shortage, are all weighing down on investment decisions... View Article