Abbey Area Community Hub

Through design development, we saw how the community could be brought closer together by integrating the two separate services to operate in tandem as one overarching health and wellbeing service but also with a future focus to allow both spaces to be combined later, through minimal intervention.

There is a homely and domestic feel to the centre, promoting health and wellbeing through encouraging activities for learning and development, whilst also considering the need for privacy in some spaces. The connection between the building and the landscape ensures people inside feel comfortable with their exposure and proximity to people outside.

The community centre, on the ground floor, provides valuable resources and a strong visual connection to the community wellbeing gardens, with access to the crèche. It hosts a range of educational, recreational, cultural and social opportunities to promote and advocate for the needs of the groups based in the centre. As well as encourage integration and inclusion between members of the community.

The healthcare centre on the first floor prioritises controlled privacy, understanding the needs of visitors in consultation and treatment. The new facility will provide modern community-focused health facilities for Central and North West London NHS and GP surgery.

The delivery of flexible, adaptable and accessible design is a testament to the consultation journey and our good working relationship with the key stakeholders.

The ground floor has been designed to provide a ranging scale of secure and private zones, from fully open and publicly accessible entrance spaces, to a secure crèche at the rear of the building, ensuring privacy and safeguarding.

Orientated in a ‘race track’ layout, with the patient rooms facing outwards and the back of house services concentrated internally. The architectural design of the hub applies an additional layer of playfulness by projecting several consultation rooms from the elevation as boxes. Internal and external spaces are interconnected through large glazed panels, framing the parkland views and maximising levels of natural light whilst bringing the enjoyment and tranquillity of the gardens indoors.

The hub utilises tactile natural materials throughout to enhance the visitor’s experience. Glulam timber sections are used as a secondary skin to the brick, creating an organic and playful pattern and opportunity for plants to climb the external trellis, further connecting the building to the surrounding gardens it sits within.