Bowbrook Dementia Care

Type/size: 90 Bed Residential Care-home for Dementia (Stirling Centre of Excellence)

Location: Fradley, Lichfield

Status: Completed June 2021

Contract Value: £9.3 Million

Construction Type: Traditional Masonry

Client: Accord Housing Association (In-house scheme) in association with Engie Construction

Scheme Overview:

Bowbrook Dementia Care is a 90 bed residential care home which has been designed to be a Stirling Centre of Excellence specialising in Dementia Care. This scheme is being designed for Accords Care & Support department in association with Engie who are the main contractor.

The site is located within the village of Fradley in Staffordshire which is 5 miles north-east of the city of Lichfield. The site was part of Bridge Farm previously used for agricultural land and before that formed part of the RAF Lichfield Air Base during the Second World War. The site has been split into two sections with the east part accommodating the Dementia Care centre and the west for a private housing development by Accord called Kings Meadow. Both developments were submitted as a joint application to the Local Authority.

Key site constraints include an existing gas easement to the northern boundary, proximity to neighbouring properties and the accessibility in and across the site and the impact on the surrounding road network.

As the development is classed as a ‘Strategic Project’ we were invited to attend a Project Team Meeting (PTM) with the local authority and present our outline proposals to the Strategic Project Team. This was attended by representatives from the planning department, local councillors and senior management. We discussed the proposals to provide both private for sale housing and a 90 bed residential care home with a connecting area of public open space in the middle which both typologies address.

The care provision element is as a result of the planned closure of three existing care homes within the Staffordshire district as they are unable to provide the specialist care required for Dementia residents. Two replacement units have been commissioned by the county council which Accord Housing Association will be delivering and managing going forward, the second one being for this site in Fradley. They will be designed to the ‘Dementia Centres of Excellence’ standard to provide the highest level of care.

Following the pre-application process the project brief and unit numbers were finalised as follows:

• 63 x private for sale houses (To be developed/designed/constructed by Accord Housing Associations and sold to the open market)

• 90 x bed residential home for Dementia Care (To be developed/designed by Accord Housing Association and built out by Engie in association with Staffordshire County Council)

The Residential Care Home consists of 3 x two storey clusters arranged around a single storey central hub containing the staff and visitor facilities. Each cluster contains 15x resident bedrooms arranged around a central courtyard and contains their own communal living facilities including kitchen, dining and assisted bathrooms.

Each element as its own vehicular access via opposite ends of the site and is separated via a large area of public open space- the village green. Both the housing and Care Home address the village green and have pedestrian access across it to reach other parts of the site.

The Residential Care Home again despite its large footprint size is of a domestic scale and appearance to complement its surroundings. The building mass is broken up with projections and relief in the building line and reinforced with the inclusion of central courtyard gardens and a roof terrace. It will be built using traditional masonry construction in brickwork to complement the housing element and existing neighbourhood.

The elevation strategy is based on familiar elements associated with a dwelling such as the chimney stack, pitched roof, traditional materials, brickwork and tile. It was important that the Care Home did not look institutionalised or commercial but instead looked like a residential dwelling. Windows are generously proportioned to allow maximum daylight into resident’s bedrooms and are grouped together in panels with a decorative window surround to replicate the appearance and rhythm of bay windows across the façade. Subtle materials changes such as tile hanging and coloured render are proposed to work in harmony with the chosen brick and tile colour in a warm palette of terracotta and red tones. Projecting brick banding and sills are proposed underneath ground and first floor windows with simple GRP canopies framing entrances. With quality facing materials, generous gardens and high quality public realm and boundary treatments we hope that this development will be a welcome addition to the village of Fradley.

Dementia Design

The Residential Care Home will be developed by Symphony which is a consortium made up of Accord Housing Association and Engie (formerly Keepmoat) to develop a Dementia Centre of Excellence for Staffordshire County Council. This care home will be designed to the Stirling University Gold Standard accreditation which is an auditing process to test the quality and success of Dementia design within a scheme.

During the design process we have worked closely with the design team at Stirling to refine the design concept for the care home, obtaining detailed feedback on the building layout and internal arrangements.

It is critical that the building layout assists residents with navigation and movement around the internal and external spaces. Physical and sensory impairments must be considered resulting in a comfortable and stress-free environment for its users.

Fradley Dementia consists of 3x two storey clusters arranged around a single storey central hub. The central hub will have a main entrance off the Worthing Road entrance via the private car park and a secondary entrance will lead out towards the village green and housing development- pedestrian access only. The central hub will house the staff and welfare facilities such as office space, laundry and catering kitchen. It will also accommodate a bistro café for use by residents, staff, family member and visitors. This can be used as an events space for residents and there is potential that this could also be open to the wider public.

Each cluster will have 15x private resident bedrooms with assisted ensuite arranged around a central courtyard garden. A loop circulation route will link the bedrooms to the homezone space which contains the communal living facilities. These facilities will allow each cluster to function as its own self-sufficient community with kitchen, dining and living rooms designed to be of a domestic scale to replicate the appearance of a house. Main meals will be prepared in the catering kitchen and delivered to each homezone so residents can eat within their own community.

The innovative cluster model design will offer our customers the opportunity to live within a small household setting. The design offers the very best environment to support people with dementia allowing them to make sense of their surroundings. Each unit will have only one front door and the space will be divided into lounge, dining, kitchen and bedroom spaces. These areas will be decorated in a sympathetic domestic manner and will have items such as a central fireplace, dining table and comfortable chairs so that customers understand the functions of the space.

The clusters will be designed to provide flexible use of both communal and individual accommodation, to allow services to meet the changing needs of the community in which they are located.

Key design considerations for the clusters include:
* Open plan layouts to increase visibility.
* Landmarks to assist people with wayfinding. E.g furniture layouts, focal points etc.
* Design of corridors to lead to meaningful destinations. Avoid dead ends and allow for a continuous loop of circulation.
* Use of natural light and bright, well-lit corridors.
* Flooring covering to be consistent in colour & texture.
* Use of colour coding and contrast to help define spaces for ease of navigation.
* Communal areas of a domestic scale to provide a homely and comfortable environment for residents.
* Seating at regular intervals to provide opportunities for rest.
* Access and views to outside space provides seasonal variation in daylight and views. Internal courtyards to allow for external views from all bedroom entrances.
* Opportunities for sensory planting in central courtyard.