In 2010, Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, England was experiencing some growing pains. The 100-year old campus had seen several additions, resulting in a labyrinthine and inefficient circulation system. The demand for pediatric specialty services has increased, and Alder Hey is seeing the highest activity in cardiac and neurology care.
David Powell, Development Director at Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, says that Alder Hey has grown by 5 percent per year for the past 10 years. “As the hospital grows, it becomes more chaotic as you add things randomly.
Alder Hey, recognizing the need for an updated facility that met modern standards, turned to its neighboring 22-acre Springfield Park with the idea of building a hospital next to the park. The existing facility would be demolished and replaced by more green space. Powell says, “We were able to incorporate the park into the design of the building.”
The hospital began to define its design goals after gaining neighborhood support. Alder Hey asked families, staff and patients to create a picture of what they would like to see as a new hospital. Powell says that 90% of the images depicted the exterior. What that told us was that they wanted to be connected to these things.
Powell explains that Alder Hey did not want just a building on the site, but something more “grandiose” to “set a mark” for their organization. The London-based BDP won the design competition.
Benedict Zucchi is a director of the firm, and the architect for the project. He admits that he was initially sceptical when he heard Alder Hey’s objectives. Zucchi: “I thought they were cliches, and that this was just another way to say they wanted a quality building.”
Alder Hey selected the most radical design proposal from BDP, “Hill in the Park,” with a building profile that mimicked the red sandstone characteristic of Liverpool, and patient wards that projected out like ripples in the landscape. Zucchi says, “That was when we realized there was a real desire to innovate on their part.”