Cockermouth Hospital & Health Centre

Key Details:

Clients: elc (Tranche 1) Ltd for Community Health Partnerships (CHP) and Cumbria PCT, now the North Cumbria CCG.

Capital value: £11.7m

Project scope: The design, build, finance and operation of the facility through the Express LIFT initiative and including support to the PCT in production of the Outline and Full Business Cases

The project:

The Cockermouth scheme was designed to provide appropriate accommodation for a fully integrated service in Cockermouth including two GP practices, community health, diagnostics, a dental practice, social care teams and community beds.

It replaced temporary accommodation that was being occupied by two of the GP practices and an old, inadequate Cottage Hospital.

It is located on land adjacent to the old hospital which is owned by the League of Friends of the Hospital, with a covenant in favour of the Leconfield Estate. The land was transferred to Fundco on a 99 year Lease at a peppercorn rent.

Patient and community benefits:

The Cockermouth scheme falls within the Allerdale locality and formed a key strand of the investment required in the area at the time. The town had suffered significant flooding in November 2009 impacting on the infrastructure required to deliver care in the locality and resulting in a number of GPs operating out of temporary accommodation. The scheme was designed to redress this situation whilst at the same time moving clinical practices forward to achieve economies of scale and community health benefits.

In addition to providing new GP accommodation, the scheme provided a much needed eleven bed ward to replace the dated Cottage Hospital helping ensure that there was a continuing ability to provide high quality, local care for those living in the vicinity.

Similarly, the inclusion of dedicated space has provided modern, purpose designed space for the provision of a variety of clinics and services.

Our challenges:

Affordability:

The facility was procured through the Express LIFT framework but affordability challenges necessitated the use of a novel, hybrid form of LIFT lease developed by the team specifically for this and the development at Cleator Moor.

Land:

The preferred location was a greenfield site immediately adjacent to the existing Cottage Hospital. As such it was highly sensitive and extensive liaison was required with the Leconsfield Estate in order to comply with their covenant on the land and meet all the Estate’s design criteria. The situation was further complicated by Cockermouth’s flood risk and the lack of capacity in the town’s drainage infrastructure. As a consequence, it was necessary to provide extensive attenuation measures and a surface water outfall to the nearby River Derwent.

NHS Restructuring:

The closing stages of construction coincided with the 2013 restructuring of the NHS which resulted in the loss of some key contacts within the Client team. As a consequence, Carveti was called upon to provide additional support to the NHS team in the run-up, and subsequent to, the tenants relocating to the building.

Our successes:

Notwithstanding there being a number of changes to the Tenant’s Requirements during construction, the project was finished on time and budget despite unfavourable weather conditions during the early part of the build.
The completed building is a striking landmark at the eastern edge of the town centre and has been extremely well received by the local community.
In retrospect it might be argued that the building was ahead of its time having been so that it has minimal impact on the environment.
The internal courtyards, and roof gardens, provide natural light and ventilation throughout.
Brise soleil are provided to the south east elevation, to reduce solar heat gain.
Building materials are locally sourced, where possible, and have been chosen for their durability, longevity, and ease of recycling.
The well insulated external envelope reduces the heating requirement during cold weather, and the solar PV panels on the roof contribute towards the building’s electricity usage.
All the mechanical and electrical fittings have been chosen to be power and water saving. In addition, a Combined Heat and Power unit meets the base energy requirements of the facility. Rainwater harvesting and the aforementioned attenuated surface water drainage system that discharges to the River Derwent minimises water usage and impact on the Town’s existing surface water drainage infrastructure.
Additionally, in line with the objective of promoting a healthy lifestyle, bike racks, and staff shower facilities are provided.
This approach to the environment and the ‘green’ credentials of the building were recognised in its BREEAM Excellent rating and its award of overall UK Green Champion in the 2014 Green Apple Awards.

Key partners:

Architect: Nightingale Associates
(now IBI Group)
D&B construction contractor: Robertson Construction
Mechanical & Electrical Engineers for Contractor: Jackson Coulson Partnership
Civil & Structural Engineer: White Young Green
Mechanical & Electrical Consultant for Employer: Clancy Consulting

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