Future plans

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Strategy Development Events 2007  

Background

1. What is a ‘garden village’?
2. Where has this been done before?
3. Why new facilities are needed at Springfield?
4. Location
5. History
6. Architecture

1. What is a ‘garden village’?

The garden village/garden city concept was pioneered by Ebenezer Howard in the Nineteenth Century. It was inspired by the work of John Ruskin and offered a healthier way of life for people living in the city; with the implicit understanding that the quality of the place in which you live can affect your health, happiness and, ultimately, your quality of life.

“Architecture is the art which so disposes and adorns the edifices raised by man, for whatsoever uses, that the sight of them may contribute to his mental health, power and pleasure.” (John Ruskin)

Still going strong

More than a hundred years later, garden villages and garden cities like Letchworth and Welwyn in London, Saltaire in Yorkshire, Bournville in the Midlands and Hampstead Garden Suburb in London are recognised as models of good town planning and remain extremely desirable places to live.

The secret to their success is a combination of:

1. high quality building design and construction;
2. the provision of work and leisure opportunities for residents; and
3. long term management by the local community.

Harmonious communities

David Lock, former chairman of the Town and Country Planning Association, describes the work of the garden village pioneers in ‘Urban Villages’, published by the Princes Foundation, 2003:

“By their example of making civilized places and harmonious communities the foundations were laid for conscious city planning; here were models both for efficient industry, and for healthy and cultured living for ordinary families. Here also were living examples of the benefits of single ownership of land and of masterplanning, which highlighted the merits of having a vision for a place, of single-minded implementation, and of self-governance and long-term management.”

2. Where has this been done before?

The Springfield Garden Village proposals are an innovative solution to the problems Springfield faces today, drawing on established town planning principles and new models of mental health care. 

Springfield Garden Village will place health at the heart of the community:

• to provide the best possible health care services;
• to promote public health and well-being; and
• to address the stigma attached to mental health care.

There is a large body of evidence as to how this can be achieved...

Town planning

The connection between planning and health is long established and is far more mainstream today than it was in the days of the garden village pioneers.

• The Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act (2004) makes new developments responsible for their social, economic and environmental impact.
• The Department of Health now plays a vital role in promoting public health through good town planning.
• For any development to be sustainable, the health of the people who come to live in that development must be considered.

Current or recent developments that are incorporating these principles into bricks and mortar include:

• Lightmoor near Telford: which describes itself as “an urban village where people want to live, now and in generations to come”.
• Millennium Village in Greenwich: an award-winning new urban village on the site of a former gas works in east London.
• Barts and The London NHS Trust redevelopment: which aims to regenerate the EC1 area of London while providing £1.2b of new hospital facilities.

Planning publications and online resources

• ‘Outdoor Environments and Health’
• ‘Building Health: Creating and enhancing places for healthy, active lives: What needs to be done?’‘
• Physical Activity and the Environment’
• ‘Would you live here?’
• ‘New Urbanism’ website

New models of mental health care

Today, mental health care helps people to overcome their problems so they can enjoy a full and meaningful life. This is a very different approach to when the facilities at Springfield were designed and constructed.

For South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust, this means creating “a future in which people with mental health problems have the same opportunity as other citizens to participate in and contribute to our communities”.

One in four of us will experience a mental health problem at some point in our lives. But there is a persistent stigma attached to the act of seeking help through mental health services.

The Springfield Garden Village proposals aim to tackle this by:

• improving access to mental health care services;
• providing a high quality treatment environment at Springfield; and
• seamlessly integrating services into the community through building design and by providing a range of work, leisure and training opportunities for service users.

By creating this healthy community, Springfield Garden Village reinforces the Trust’s vision:

“We will work in partnership with those who use our services, their relatives, carers and friends, and other stakeholders to improve people’s life chances by promoting their health, safety and well-being and assisting them to access the opportunities that they value: homes, jobs, friends, relationships, education, social pursuits, leisure activities, spiritual possibilities”.

Recent or current developments that are incorporating these principles into bricks and mortar include:

• Toronto Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (see photograph and drawing, above)
• Glenside Campus in South Australia

"This is a model to fight stigma. To make people feel they don't pay an extra price for this illness.
Dr. Paul Garfinkel, Director of Toronto CAMH development, quoted in the Toronto Star, February 2007.

Health care publications and online resources

• ‘Masterplanning Health: A brief guide for Health Boards’
• ‘Mind Exercise Nutrition Do It’ website
• ‘Designers for Mental Health Care Settings Network’ website

3. Why new facilities are needed at Springfield?

Springfield provides some of Britain’s best and most innovative mental health care services in mental health accommodation designed for a different age. The need to provide modern facilities is the driving force behind the Springfield Garden Village proposals.

The past…

The old Phoenix Ward had tiny rooms with no private bathrooms, a sprawling layout, poor sight lines and failing infrastructure. Located on the first floor of Springfield’s 1840 Main Building, it was difficult for service users to get any fresh air or exercise. The ward was still in use in 2005, when it was replaced with the new Phoenix Unit (below).

The future...

The new Phoenix Unit at Springfield could not be more different. It has won awards (e.g. 2005 Commendation at Wandsworth Borough Council Design Awards) and worldwide acclaim for its design and the positive impact it makes on the care people receive there. The manager of the new ward recently said:

"There used to be an attitude that people with mental illness didn't deserve facilities but that is a fallacy. People with good facilities change their behaviour for the better."

Good design

The reason for the difference is that new facilities are built with input from staff and service users to ensure they meet everyone’s needs and are as therapeutic as possible. They meet national standards with private bedrooms and bathrooms. And with large internal courtyards and activity rooms, they offer immediate and safe access to fresh air and exercise. To see how things are already moving forward at Springfield, read the Regeneration in Action section.

4. Location

Springfield University Hospital sits in 33 hectares (80 acres) of grounds that are largely detached from the surrounding streets of Earlsfield, Wandsworth Common and Tooting.

The site includes Springfield University Hospital, Brendoncare Home for Older People, Joan Bicknell Centre and Central London Golf Centre. Approximately 11 hectares of the site are designated as Metropolitan Open Land. 

Road access to the site can be gained from the south east via Glenburnie Road (off Trinity Road) and from the north west from Burntwood Lane. The site is also served by Tooting Bec underground station and Earlsfield and Wandsworth Common main line stations. 

The site is bounded to the north by Nightingale School and residential development. A secondary school and sports ground adjoin the northern and eastern boundaries. Streatham Cemetery runs along the southern boundary. Residential streets, playing fields and another secondary school run along the south-western boundary. Burntwood Lane forms the majority of the north-western boundary. 

5. History

Springfield University Hospital is one of the UK’s oldest and largest undeveloped mental health facilities. Prior to becoming hospital grounds, the site was known as Springfield Park, which included an 18th Century mansion with farm buildings, stables and a coachman’s house.

In the 1830s, the estate was purchased for the Surrey County Pauper Lunatic Asylum (now known as Springfield University Hospital) to be built. The intent was to provide better care and living conditions for those with mental illness. It was conceived as a place of refuge and healing and provided all the services of a country village: farming, gardens, a chapel, a mortuary, a ballroom, a boiler house and recreation facilities. Footpaths crossed the site and provided connections to the surrounding community and countryside.

Since the hospital opened in 1841 Springfield has been used for mental health care. Demand for mental health services has grown and treatment methods have evolved. The hospital and its services continued to expand and develop in response to changing needs and practices.

Throughout the 20th Century a number of buildings were added to the site. Generally these were not in keeping with the original hospital and did not follow a logical or efficient layout. Unsympathetic additions and alterations to historic buildings have also taken place.

6. Architecture

The first Springfield Hospital building opened in 1841 based on a design by William Moseley. This building and the Admissions Building (once known as the Elizabeth Newton Wing) is Grade II listed.

The main building’s architecture is a symmetrical Tudor red brick style using a corridor plan design. This was a typical layout for asylums of the period. The design was intended to evoke a sense of importance and formality and the building was meant to be the defining structure on the site.

 

 

 

 

In 1849, the original hospital was extended with two wings designed by Edward Lapidge, including new male and female ‘airing courts’. At the rear of the hospital a number of smaller buildings were added over the years including:

• The Chapel (1880s)
• The Mortuary (late 19th century)
• The Ballroom (1879)

All of the above buildings are intended to be preserved, restored and converted to new uses. The condition of the listed buildings varies considerably and as the hospital continues to vacate the old facilities their condition is likely to deteriorate further. All of the buildings require substantial reinvestment in order to facilitate their reuse.

Considered as part of a site-wide regeneration programme, there is a significant opportunity to protect and enhance the site’s significant buildings. They will remain central to the site’s future.