St Clement's Surgery Winchester
SWH has been involved with the development of this much-needed three storey healthcare building, for a long time. Seeing it to fruition, despite a number of challenges, is testament to tenacity and innovation.
This project involved a three storey healthcare building with associated hard landscaping, public realm and highway improvements in the heart of Winchester.
SWH have been involved in this project since 2011 and supported it through multiple design iterations, securing approval by multiple local statutory authorities.
Given the site's location - city centre, adjacent to a primary thoroughfare, and surrounded by medium storey residential and commercial buildings, including a neighbouring church with a basement. It was essential to minimise adverse impacts wherever possible.
The ground conditions were also a challenge. The poor quality soil meant piling was required. Additionally, St Clement's Surgery is on a site of archaeological importance. It had been previously investigated, but additional investigations were also required during design.
Foundation design and layout had to consider avoiding areas of archaeological importance. In addition, there are fibre optic cables below ground, serving thousands of Winchester residents. It was imperative to avoid them being damaged so the building was designed with a first floor cantilever to oversail them. There is also an underground culvert adjacent the building, which is classed as a river according to the Environment Agency and it was equally important to ensure it was not damaged as a result of construction.
IMAGE CREDIT: Assura
