RECENT NEWS

Thrive – a national charity that promotes gardening for health and wellbeing, and runs Social and Therapeutic Horticulture (STH) programmes ‘for hundreds of people’ at its three gardens in Birmingham, London, and near Reading, says it latest campaign, ‘Plants not pressure’ advocates gardens and green space as ‘a place for men to grow their mental and physical strength’.

Architecture director, Akshay Khera, has been appointed as head of the Bristol studio of global design practice, BDP.

The practice says his appointment supports its continued growth in the region as ‘a widely respected, socially progressive practice with an embedded multidisciplinary approach across the healthcare, housing, education, and workplace sectors’.

Aggreko has increased its global investment in mobile battery energy storage solutions (BESS) to around US$200 m, in a move it says will allow more industries to access the latest in battery technology and reach Net Zero targets.

The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) has granted the UK’s first accreditation of a building inspector competency scheme to the Building Safety Competency Foundation (BSCF), for its Building Control Inspector (BCI) competence certification scheme.

A ‘unique’ new legal-tech recruitment platform has launched in the UK ‘to help put an end to overseas worker scams in the social and healthcare sectors, and directly connect UK employers and recruiters with pre-qualified overseas global talent’.

The University of Sunderland and the University of Anahuac Mexico have committed to develop what they describe as ‘an exciting collaborative partnership’ – between the Faculty of Psychology at Anahuac and the School of Psychology and Helen McArdle Nursing and Care Research Institute at Sunderland.

Compliance Group, a leading UK integrated provider of safety and regulatory compliance services across electrical, fire, and water, has announced its latest merger – with CT Fire Protection, which joins its Fire Division to deliver high-quality fire sprinkler systems and associated services ‘on time and within budget’.

Spire Healthcare – reportedly the UK’s first independent sector healthcare provider to commit to become carbon neutral by 2030 – has embarked on ‘a landmark project’ to install 12,155 solar panels at all its 38 hospitals across England, Wales, and Scotland this year.

NHS Property Services has re-launched its established, award-winning space management system, NHS Open Space, which it says ‘will help benefit customers, landlords, and patients across the entire health system’.

Construction has begun of a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) for Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust at its Alumhurst Road site in Bournemouth.

A prison in Buckinghamshire has supported its staff as part National Mental Health Awareness Week where the theme has been ‘Movement: Moving more for our mental health’.

The first ground has been broken for a new integrated health and social care facility on the Isles of Scilly, by the Duke of Cornwall.

His Royal Highness was given a tour of St Mary’s Community Hospital on 10 May, before being handed a spade to carry out the ceremony, with the ground breaking following the new integrated facility securing both planning and national funding approval. After breaking ground, Prince William dubbed the development ‘exciting’, and said he looked forward to coming to see it next year.

This summer Horne Engineering, the specialist manufacturer of thermostatic showers, taps, and valves, is encouraging specifiers across the healthcare estate to take advantage of the better weather to ‘explore innovative thermostatic and temperature control solutions’ for their facilities via its mobile exhibition, or Roadshow.

CABE (the Chartered Association of Building Engineers) has announced that Richard Harral, formerly the Association’s Technical director, has been formally announced as its new Chief Executive.

A NEW initiative directly addressing the needs of young people with neurodiversity has been launched by a young woman sharing her own personal experiences.

Monkwearmouth Development – a joint venture between Sir Robert McAlpine Capital Ventures and Argon Property Development Solutions, with funding from Railpen, has handed over its first development to NTW Solutions at Monkwearmouth Hospital in Sunderland.

A time capsule has been buried at the construction site of Manchester’s new £105.9 m adult mental health inpatient unit, North View.

To be operated by Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust (GMMH), the facility will replace the current Park House adult mental health inpatient unit on the North Manchester General Hospital site. Work on the 150-bedroom unit started in August 2022, with it anticipated to be built and operational this year.

Airedale General Hospital near Keighley is using a new geospatial system to help manage its RAAC (reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete) monitoring and repairs programme.

Procurement organisation and social enterprise, Fusion21, has announced the renewal of its national Materials Supply and Associated Services Framework, worth up to £250 million over four years, and is inviting bids from interested suppliers providing regional or national coverage.

A safety system for plant said by the company to be the market’s ‘most advanced AI human form recognition device’ has won technology solutions specialist, Safety Shield Global, the King’s Award for Enterprise.