Donnington Medical Practice complete

The new medical practice and pharmacy in Wrekin Drive, Donnington, Telford was designed and project managed by the Building Consultancy team at Johnson Fellows LLP. This was a challenging project as it needed to be designed around an historic below ground culvert which runs diagonally across the site and incorporate raft foundations due to potential previous coal mining activity.

Johnson Fellows instigated an enabling works scheme in advance of the main building contract to take care of ground investigations, asbestos removal, part demolition of the existing practice building, reconfiguration of the mains utilities which also fed the adjacent ambulance station via the medical practice, and the provision of temporary accommodation to minimise disruption to the day to day running of the practice. These works were undertaken during the Summer/Autumn of 2012, and then the new building started to be constructed in October.

The building is of steel framed construction incorporating a timber framed inner skin to the external walls with a combination of facing brickwork, aluminium cladding and synthetic render to provide an interesting and 3 dimensional appearance. The first floor is of concrete plank construction and the prefabricated steel/timber roof is finished with corrugated steel sheet cladding. The external appearance is enhanced with colour coded doors, windows and solar shading.

Internally, the building offers spacious and friendly accommodation where the main reception at ground floor level and the atrium at first floor level are the main focal points. The building is finished to a high standard and provides user friendly way finding facilities which are designed to make the environment more pleasant and calming for patients, visitors and staff. This is enhanced by the pharmacy facility which provides a convenient way for patients to pick up subscriptions.

Phase 1 was completed in July 2013 and Phase 2, including the pharmacy, the following October. The building is of contemporary design and has achieved BREEAM Very Good status. The new medical practice is set over two floors and provides nearly 18,000 sq. ft. of modern clinical and administrative accommodation including a minor operating suite, physiotherapy room, 10 consulting rooms, PCT facilities and appropriate expansion space together with landscaped grounds and gardens with 62 car parking spaces.

The new facility is almost double the size of the original 1960’s building and is complimented by Queens Road Consulting Rooms (‘the bungalow’), which was a previous project to convert a detached bungalow into 4 new consulting rooms in preparation for the main redevelopment project. The bungalow also has 27 car parking spaces with easy access between both sites via a purpose built ramp, therefore the people of Donnington are now served with first class primary care facilities.