Sheffield hospitals estates team wins prize for helipad design

Published: 19-Jun-2017

Design and construction team wins Best Large Commercial Building in regional Local Authority Building Control Awards

The team behind the planning, construction and design of a new life-saving helipad and out-of-hours GP centre at the Northern General Hospital has won a prestigious regional award.

Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust’s estates team, which oversees construction and property management across Sheffield’s five adult NHS hospitals, as well as maintenance of community properties and management of external contractors, were named joint winners of the Best Large Commercial Building in the regional Local Authority Building Control Awards.

The state-of-the-art helipad and the out-of-hours GP centre, which is located directly beneath it, are situated right next to the entrance of the A&E department at the Northern General Hospital.

Since it opened in June 2016, the helipad has transformed care for patients being transferred for life-saving treatment.

The GP centre provides non-urgent medical advice when local surgeries are closed.

The team was judged on four key areas: overall design, sustainability, good management of a project, and effective communication.

We’ve had nothing but praise for the design, which could quite easily have been bland in its appearance had it not been for the fantastic design put together by the architects

Leigh Shearstone, estates manager (design) at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “It’s fantastic to get some recognition for our work.

“This was a unique project, requiring a whole team effort, and we are incredibly proud of what we have achieved.

“Through careful design and planning of the scheme we were able to achieve our objectives and provide a fully-functioning and compliant helipad right next to the entrance of the A&E department with the space underneath utilised for an out-of-hours GP centre.

“There’s been lots of interest in the helipad, and we’ve had nothing but praise for the design, which could quite easily have been bland in its appearance had it not been for the fantastic design put together by the architects.

“It makes good use of materials and limited space in a busy hospital site.”

Sheffield Teaching Hospitals’ Estates Team worked with Henry Boot PLC, JTP Architects, Eastwood and Partners, Sheffield Electric, and CPR Surveyors on the project.

They will now go through to the LABC grand finals in London in November where the national winners of the title will be unveiled.

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