A NEW SPECIALIST unit at Langdon Hospital in Dawlish has won a prestigious award.

The Brook, a 10 flat block for patients with learning disabilities and autism, won the Best Specialist Care Design category at this year's Healthcare Design Awards.

It was completed by construction company Kier earlier this year and has been designed specifically to care for individuals with learning disabilities and/or autistic people for whom, even with reasonable adjustments, the environment of a mainstream hospital cannot provide optimal care and treatment for their acute mental health needs.

Specialist design features include wide, curved circulation routes within the building with seating nooks and window seats to support gradual transitions between spaces.

External corridors offer discreet movement options and emergency access without disruption to other areas of the facility.

The finished project provides ‘therapeutic environments with a strong focus on connections with the outdoors to support patient wellbeing’.

Designing for neurodiversity was crucial to the project’s success, and it was critical that the design of The Brook was flexible enough to cater for a mixed patient group without detriment to any patient.

It was also key that there was no ‘one size fits all’ approach, and that each individual’s experience and sensory needs with can vary enormously.

Ten individual patient flats are provided at The Brook, each containing a living/dining space, bedroom, ensuite, and private garden.

There are also communal day spaces, treatment and therapy rooms, visitor facilities, and staff spaces all arranged around a series of gardens and courtyards.

Doug Lloyd, Regional Director at Kier Construction Western and Wales, said: ‘We are proud to have played a part in delivering The Brook, a facility that truly reflects the needs of its patients.

‘This shortlisting is a testament to the collaborative effort and shared commitment to creating a therapeutic, inclusive environment that will make a real difference to people’s lives.’

A spokesperson from Grainge Architects said: ‘The design of The Brook is the product of extensive research, knowledge sharing and co-production.

‘The development process was a truly collaborative effort to provide a sensory-informed environment that offers the best possible setting for the specialist care of its patients and we are delighted that The Brook has been shortlisted for this award.’

Sonja Manton, Director of Strategy and Partnership at Devon Partnership NHS Trust, said: ‘The Brook represents a major step forward in the quality of care we are able to provide for individuals with a learning disability and/or autistic people whose needs cannot be met in a mainstream mental health hospital, even with reasonable adjustments.

‘We worked closely with experts by experience at every stage of the design process to understand individual patient needs to develop a modern, therapeutic environment with a focus on recovery and moving towards independent living.’