Evelina Children’s Hospital gets the public’s vote at the RIBA Stirling Prize 2006
Buro Happold-engineered project gets almost half the votes from ceremony viewers
Buro Happold is proud to have provided the structural engineering design for Evelina Children’s Hospital, which won the poll of public opinion on the six buildings shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize 2006.
The prestigious Stirling Prize, awarded by the jury to Richard Rogers Partnership for the new terminal at Barajas Airport in Madrid, recognises one building which has made the greatest contribution to British architecture in the past year. Rogers was awarded the £20,000 accolade by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), in association with The Architects’ Journal, at the Roundhouse in London on Saturday night (14 Oct), in a ceremony televised live on Channel 4.
The public’s opinion, gauged by a telephone vote run by Channel 4 during its coverage of the ceremony, was overwhelmingly in favour of Evelina, designed by Hopkins Architects. A convincing 49% chose the hospital, which opened to patients last November.
Evelina Children’s Hospital, part of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, is London’s first new children’s hospital for more than 100 years. Based on the St Thomas’s Hospital site, the 140-bed hospital brings the majority of Guy’s and St Thomas’s children’s services together under one roof.
Buro Happold partner and project principal, Mike Cook, said: “Getting such strong public support for this project is a welcome compliment for the whole design team. The public vote provides an interesting and valuable view of the success of a building.
“To have one of our projects receive such public appreciation is a real thrill and, although indirectly, recognition of our abilities in making the architect’s vision a reality. All our engineers who contributed to the project are, justifiably, very proud of the hospital – and can now be proud of receiving such strong public support.”
The design philosophy behind Evelina was to create an exciting environment for children with a large open space, formed by the conservatory roof, which acts as a focal communal area. Designing this huge glass roof, which begins at level three and curves up and over level seven to create a four-story high atrium, was a key challenge for the structural engineering team. The roof’s glass panels are attached to a steel diagrid structure, made up of diagonally intersecting ribs. The complicated geometry of the roof led to a number of other issues to consider such as dealing with tolerance, buildability and structural movements.
Other design features of the new hospital include scenic lifts and a link bridge connecting Evelina to Guy's and St Thomas's Hospital. In addition to structural engineering, Buro Happold also provided fire engineering services and planning supervision for the project.
Evelina was one of 62 new buildings across the UK and the EU to win a RIBA Award in June, from which the Stirling Prize shortlist was drawn.
On Evelina, RIBA said: “The entrance on Lambeth Palace Road admits the visitor to an internal street which is illuminated by shafts of light from the spectacular atrium above. The technical facilities, normally associated with fear, are made pleasant and inviting, and daylight reaches every hospital bed. Here the patient, not the institution, is given priority.”
Holding the awards at The Roundhouse was also fitting for Buro Happold – the practice provided building services engineering for the refurbishment of the recently reopened performing arts venue.
Ends
Buro Happold
Press office and practice information at www.burohappold.com
Images and more information about the engineering of Evelina Children’s Hospital are available, please contact the press office:
Contact:
Neil Wilks
Press officer
Tel +44 (0)1225 321 764
Fax +44 (0)8707 874 148
Mobile +44 (0)7738 574 178
Email neil.wilks@burohappold.com
Buro Happold is a multi-disciplinary international practice of consulting engineers established in 1976. It offers civil and structural engineering, mechanical and electrical engineering, quantity surveying, building services and environmental engineering, health and safety management, infrastructure and traffic engineering, ground engineering, façade engineering, fire engineering, computational fluid dynamics analysis, disability design consultancy, project management, urban design and a range of specialist CAD services.
