Cambridge Children’s will serve children and young people in their most formative years, so it was important to make sure that the hospital felt welcoming and empathetic. It reflects the insights and creativity that came from co-designing with children, young people, parents and carers.

Cambridge Children’s Hospital will feel very different to a typical hospital environment, offering a sense of relief and surprise. The central playground, ward gardens and terraces will contain pockets of activity spaces for patients and families to explore. Alongside playgrounds and sensory gardens, supporting biodiversity and wildlife, there will also be dedicated spaces for teenagers and young people to chill out.

Fresh air, natural daylight and a connection to the outdoors will be key, improving clinical outcomes, wellbeing and engagement with the hospital. The design will minimise barriers and maximise inclusion, bringing staff, researchers and families together.

Using an Adaptable Design Framework, we can be sure that that the building is resilient to changing technologies and clinical requirements. Internal spaces are categorised either ‘high’ or ‘medium tech’, with the former supporting the more heavily-serviced spaces such as operating theatres, and the latter typically accommodating patient wards. Situating high-tech operating theatres on the first floor means they can connect to the existing ‘hot floor’ of The Rosie Hospital and wider Addenbrooke’s estate.

Acute hospitals are highly energy intensive buildings. We are reducing energy demand across the entire life of the hospital by employing highly efficient structural and façade systems to dramatically reducing upfront emissions, introducing courtyards and lightwells to provide fresh air and daylight to all parts of the building, and by exploring on-site renewable energy sources. With a clearly defined Net Zero Carbon pathway, combined with Passivhaus-standard design and certification in BREEAM, Cambridge Children’s aims to be one of the most sustainable hospitals in the UK.