Ancora House double award win
CWP’s £14m mental health unit for children and young people has scooped two awards at this year’s Design in Mental Health Awards.
Ancora House at the Countess of Chester Health Park in Chester won the “Project of the Year” and “Service User Engagement” awards at the national event.
The Trust was praised for including young people in all stages of development, from initial design through to opening.
Dan Allmark, head of capital and property management, said: “We’re delighted to have won two awards at such a prestigious event, but we’re really accepting these awards on behalf of all of the young people who helped to create such a fantastic facility.
“These awards recognise the input of everyone, including service users, CWP staff and our valued partners.”
Bella Cope, CWP young advisor who has previously accessed services, added: “As a young person who has experienced the need for inpatient care, I can see how much better Ancora House meets the needs of those young people with mental health issues. In my opinion having a positive environment to recover in is crucial and can ease the difficulty of being away from home at such a challenging time in your life.”
The Ancora Hosue project has been led by Villicare, the joint venture project between CWP and Ryhurst Ltd. The unit was designed by mental health specialists Gilling Dod Architects and built by Eric Wright Construction.
Chris Tonge, general manager of Villicare LLP, commented: “Ancora House is a credit to the commitment of everyone involved in the project, particularly the young people from the CAMHS service who have so enthusiastically helped and guided us to provide an excellent user-focussed facility.
“The new facility is helping to improve access, promote resilience and foster continuous improvement to deliver the best possible CAMHS services for the region.”
Ancora House provides 26 beds across two wards, plus a four bed specialist area.
As well as two fully-operational CAMHS wards, the unit also boasts an Ofsted “outstanding” education centre, visiting areas and communal spaces, such as Activities of Daily Living (ADL) amenities, exercise room and multi-faith area.
The unit also includes secure gardens as well as horticultural and landscaped areas providing external recreational facilities, including outdoor exercise equipment.