South Tees Hospitals provides a number of services at The Friary in Richmond including Victoria Ward and outpatient clinics. In addition to the NHS services provided, there is a GP’s surgery. The Friary Surgery is a part-dispensing practice with a list size of 5,750 patients in the attractive market town of Richmond, North Yorkshire. The practice covers approximately 146 square miles and in addition to Richmond, encompasses many pretty villages and hamlets spread over varied and sometime remote terrain.

PHP Group contacted us following a Fire Risk Assessment saying that remedial works are required to the fire compartmentalisation & doors. The Victoria Ward which is a specialist dementia ward, did not meet the specification required.

The GP surgery remained operational throughout the refurbishment; we achieved this by installing DDA approved temporary buildings in the car park. This allowed the site to keep operating, patients checked into reception in the main building, then went to the temporary accommodation.

Our contract management team who led the project; as well as leading the project we worked with our suppliers to design lighting solutions that would provide suitable lighting in-line with requirements from the NHSPS and Infection control. As a result, our good lighting design enabled them to experience more independence, have more of a choice and thus retain more dignity.

The building has 34 sash windows to the front of the building that needed to be fully refurbished and reinstalled. As the building is Grade II listed, we had to do this in line with the Grade II listing requirements. We removed the windows, refurbished them, and re-installed them. We meet the requirements of Grade II listing, whilst removing issues identified during building our onsite project and ensuring they can be operated with improved efficiency.

During the refurbishment we upgraded the fire alarm system from an L2 standard to L1, as well as replacing a selected number of fire doors and increasing the fire protection onsite. We also refurbished all the flooring, and carried decoration works and a partial electrical rewire.

Bathing the patients had historically been very difficult on site, therefore we installed a new bathroom with an ARJO Primo bath, which electronically lifts and lowers the patient within the bath to allow staff to work with the patient at a more comfortable height (standing) The final part of the refurbishment was transforming a former bathroom/storeroom  into a wet room, allowing wheelchair users to be showered by the nursing staff.

As a result of the hard work and determination in partnership with our client, James Dunbar from South Tees Hospital stated the below which outlines the successful of the project carried out.

James Dunbar, clinical collaborative chair at South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I am delighted that the Friary Hospital’s Victoria Ward is once again welcoming inpatients following the completion of necessary work by the building’s landlord, with the support of NHS Property Services.

Associated news article:
https://www.southtees.nhs.uk/news/friarys-victoria-ward-reopens-following-extensive-refurbishment/