Napper Architects were commissioned by the North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) to undertake a study to explore the options available for a new ambulance station on land to the north west of the existing Fleet Services Centre in Sunderland. The development will form part of a long-term development strategy with the new building acting as a ‘hub’ for the ‘hub and spoke’ model. The study explored the viability of the proposed operating model in the South Northumberland area of the NEAS region.
The site currently contains both an ambulance servicing centre and a large ambulance station accommodated in two industrial warehouses. The proposals provide a new-build ambulance station with the existing warehouses linked to provide a large vehicle servicing workshop. The station accommodates ambulance parking, changing facilities, rest areas, administration and meeting/break-out spaces. The building is designed to be highly energy efficient and to incorporate renewable energy sources, including PV and thermal panels, and a rainwater harvesting system.
