The Derbyshire Making Room for Dignity Programme represents a step change in the delivery of modern mental healthcare environments in the UK, combining innovation, dignity and sustainability at scale.
The programme has delivered two new adult Acute Assessment Units (AAUs) and Derbyshire’s first ever Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), eliminating the long‑standing need for service users to receive care out of county and significantly improving continuity, recovery and wellbeing.
It has been constructed over two separate sites: a 54-bed acute facility at the Derwent Unit in Chesterfield, with a 14-bed PICU and further 54-bed acute unit at Kingsway Hospital in Derby.
At the heart of the scheme is a therapeutic, non‑institutional environment. Bedrooms are en‑suite and designed to maximise privacy and dignity, with controllable lighting, underfloor heating and user‑controlled ventilation. Crucially, the PICU was designed to look and feel almost identical to the AAU, with differences hidden behind the scenes. This continuity reduces anxiety during escalation and de‑escalation of care, directly supporting recovery outcomes.
The buildings are visually engaging and highly flexible. A structural 8‑metre grid allows internal spaces to be reconfigured as models of care evolve, while plant areas and foundations have been future‑proofed to allow additional wards to be added without disrupting live clinical services. Internally, wards are self‑sufficient yet connected to shared therapy spaces, while externally a series of landscaped courtyards and innovative sky gardens provide safe, usable outdoor space even where first‑floor wards were unavoidable.
The buildings were carefully designed to blend with neighbouring residential developments through material choice and massing, supported by extensive engagement with planners and residents. All bedrooms overlook landscaped visual amenity gardens, which assist privacy and dignity by creating an inaccessible boundary along the bedroom wings and enhance the view from the bedrooms. Across the wider estate, the project has delivered significant biodiversity net gain through wildflower planting and the introduction of over 500 trees. The scheme was also designed to incorporate as much usable outdoor space as possible, with multiple large, landscaped courtyards, gym and fitness areas with suitable rubber crumb flooring. Fencing was designed to be screened with visuals of Derbyshire nature scenes to further reduce the institutional feel.
The programme is also exemplary in its approach to sustainability. A fabric‑first strategy, Passivhaus‑inspired detailing, all‑electric systems, air source heat pumps and photovoltaic panels ensure high energy efficiency and low operational carbon. Early contractor engagement enabled a shift to raft foundations, significantly reducing embodied carbon, and the scheme achieved over 80% Modern Methods of Construction.
Finally, this project is defined by exceptional collaboration and co‑production. The team worked closely with estates, clinicians and service users, incorporating lived experience throughout the design process. Innovative tools such as immersive digital visualisation allowed users and staff to shape spaces meaningfully, while this inclusive approach was formally recognised through an IHEEM award for inclusivity. Together, the team delivered an affordable, dignified and future‑ready mental health environment without compromising front‑line care.
