North View in-patient hospital scoops national design award
North View, Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust’s new in-patient state-of-the-art hospital, has won a prestigious national award for its design.
The £105.9m, 150-bed unit on the North Manchester General Hospital site triumphed in the Best Specialist or Dementia Care Design at the Healthcare Design Awards 2025 on 13 February.
Celebrating the best of healthcare design, the Healthcare Design Awards recognise innovation and excellence in the design of care facilities.
North View was recognised for having service users’ care at the centre of its design and is one of the first multi-level mental health units with roof gardens in the north of England. It is also among the first in a new series of net-zero carbon, all-electric hospitals being built nationally.
Marc Reed, Associate Director of Capital, Estates & Facilities for GMMH and Project Director for North View, said: “This is brilliant news. This award reiterates our confidence that North View is an outstanding facility which both supports the recovery of our service users and serves the communities of North Manchester.
“This accolade is recognition of the hard work and commitment of so many that have been invested in its design, build and operation.”
The building concept was developed by following the service user’s journey into the hospital for the first time, considering the initial first impressions and welcoming arrival spaces, through to experiences on and off ward to create safe and therapeutic environments that support recovery.
Through design, the Project Delivery Team focused on creating wards that were co-developed with service users, with spaces that encourage natural light throughout and provide direct level access to individual garden areas, as well as supporting and equipping staff to provide the very best care for patients.
Specialist attention was made to create specific dementia-friendly environments that aid familiarity, independence and identity to achieve the highest possible standards in older adults and dementia design.
The building, which opened operationally in November 2024, has a purpose-built Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit, six adult acute wards for female and male adults, one rehabilitation ward, one older adults’ ward and a treatment suite that supports research and innovation studies.
North View replaced the Trusts inpatient dormitory accommodation at Park House and forms part of the wider site masterplan which reimagines a multi-faceted and holistic approach to healthcare delivery at the heart of the community.
The awards, organised by Nexus Media Group which also publishes Healthcare Property magazine, recognise innovation and excellence in the design of health and care facilities. They aim to celebrate projects that do not just demonstrate good design, but are making a real, positive impact on people’s lives, whether they be patients, staff, residents, or visitors.
North View’s success comes amid a record number of entries for six categories and the challenge of competition from mental health builds across both public and private providers nationwide.
The hospital has also been shortlisted for the Greater Manchester Building of the Year Award 2024 run by Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce with the winner announced next month.
