True Team Lincolnshire Collaboration Supports the Development of the New Medical School at the University of Lincoln
Three of Team Lincolnshire’s ambassadors have been the driving force behind one of the county’s most exciting, vital and significant projects to date; the new Lincoln Medical School
Before the conception of this much needed development, Lincolnshire was the largest county in the whole of the UK not served by a medical school. This could attribute to the shortage in GPs and NHS staff in general that Lincolnshire faces.
Within Lincolnshire there is a chronic shortage of specialist medical services. Over 55s are set to increase at more than 20% of the national rate. Over 100,000 adults are estimated to have a diagnosed mental health disorder, and NHS staffing gaps result in a high locum delivery. The business case to build a new medical school was unambiguous.
Bevan Adams, Project Manager at the University of Lincoln, worked with Perfect Circle - a consortium comprising of Team Lincolnshire ambassador Gleeds, along with Pick Everard, and AECOM, to deliver project management, cost management, BREEAM consultancy services and design services for the scheme. The provision of these services has been enabled by the SCAPE National Built Environment Consultancy Services (BECS) framework. Gleeds is a world-class independent property and construction consultancy who has worked on some of the county’s most prestigious projects.
The new development located at the Brayford Pool Campus in Lincoln, needed a building to co-locate a variety of users and activities; those specific to the Lincoln Medical School including specialist medical facilities and computer labs, and for wider University use, including seminar rooms, a library space, social learning spaces and an atrium/café.
Team Lincolnshire ambassadors Influence Landscape Architects were appointed to deliver RIBA Stage 3 design, in conjunction with HLM as lead designers too for a new medical school for the University. The £21million development needed to provide students with state of the art facilities whist aiming to deliver a carbon neutral scheme designed to comply with the BREEAM Excellent environmental standard.
Influence were required to sensitively incorporate a design that responds to the existing campus, providing public realm that connects and directs users while taking account of the requirements of maintaining the Delph Pond; a large flood alleviation pond situated adjacent to the site and at the centre of the campus. In addition to designing the ground floor landscape plan, the new building includes a second floor roof terrace for the use of students and staff. The soft design is that of a modern physic garden reflecting the medicinal properties of plants throughout the ages, and a vertical garden wall.
Sara Boland, Managing Director of Influence comments:
"It is exciting and a privilege to be involved in this flagship Lincolnshire project and to work within a great team. Seeing the public realm in place ensures the integrity of our original designs is maintained in the realisation of the space."This new medical school welcomed its first cohort of undergraduate medicine students to Lincoln in September 2019. It is envisaged that the medical school will make a significant difference to the Lincolnshire region, which will benefit from the establishment of this hub of medical expertise: clinical placements will take place at hospitals, GP surgeries and other healthcare units across the county in collaboration with United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust and the Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.
In April 2021 the new purpose-built facility to house the Lincoln Medical School was opened. It includes a range of laboratories such as clinical skills suite, anatomy suite and a category 2 science laboratory. It is also home to a dedicated Bio-Medical & Health Sciences Library and high-quality social learning spaces to create a real sense of place for the Medical students
Bevan Adams Project Manager at the University of Lincoln comments:
“There was a great spirit of collaboration on this project; both with consultants and contractors. And that was evidently crucial to overcome the unprecedented challenges we faced and deliver such a quality building.”This is a terrific example of Team Lincolnshire ambassadors collaborating on one of the region’s most valuable and much needed developments. By creating such an innovative, inspiring and attractive learning environment, it is helping attract and retain much needed medical talent within the county. Therefore protecting the well-being of the local community, as well as fuelling the economy.
