PC Channel Islands

Creating a community at Les Bourgs Hospice

Les Bourgs Hospice

The new state-of-the-art Les Bourgs Hospice has begun to provide vital care for terminally ill patients in Guernsey.

Designed to address a specific need within the community, the £4 million development comprises seven specialist rooms for patients and a day hospice where people can call in for treatment on a daily basis. Les Bourgs Hospice replaces an existing hospice on the site that had unfortunately ceased to provide the necessary levels of care.

Les Bourgs Hospice

The project began in October 2010 and was completed in November 2011, with RG Falla as the main contractor and CCD Architects as the architect.

Les Bourgs Hospice

Interestingly, the development has incorporated both the reconstruction of the original hospice and the construction of several new modern buildings. Whilst the revamped hospice features a rendered finish and a slate roof, the modern additions have been constructed using glass and timber and feature a tiled roof.

Les Bourgs Hospice

Comprising approximately 1600 square metres of space, the two-storey development features accommodation for patients on the ground floor and administration, restrooms and nurse changing rooms on the first floor. Sustainable features include high levels of insulation and air source heat pumps to facilitate underfloor heating.

Les Bourgs Hospice

The buildings have been constructed around a carefully landscaped central garden area, in essence establishing the garden as a room in itself. Patients may look out onto the garden or be wheeled out in their beds onto the veranda, where they each have their own private space.

Les Bourgs Hospice

Due to the shape and accessibility of the site, the reception area and patient accommodation are on opposite sides of the development. In order to link the two facilities, a glass corridor runs over a live stream that runs through the middle of the site.

Andrew Dyke, CCD Architects, explained:

“We wanted to get away from the clinical feel that you can sometimes get with this kind of building and create a building that would cater to the needs of the community whilst providing something fresh and new.

Les Bourgs Hospice

“This is a very important project for the community and I think the fact that we live on an island has been a great help, as people can be made much more aware of the work that is being carried out. This is one of the reasons why fundraising has been so successful – the island has managed to raise a huge amount of money in a fairly short space of time.

Les Bourgs Hospice

“Because the community takes such projects to heart, designing the new hospice was a responsibility as well as a privilege. We are delighted to have been given the opportunity to design such an unusual and exciting project.”

About the author

Roma Publications