Silverwood – Surrey’s new mental health inpatient service

Surrey’s new mental health inpatient service, Silverwood, has opened on the St Peter’s Hospital campus in Chertsey, on the site of the old Abraham Cowley Unit. It has 64 single ensuite bedrooms across four wards, each with its own lounge, dining area, garden, sensory space and activity room. The therapies department contains a gym, sports garden, therapy garden, music room, art room and kitchen, and there is a woodland walk outside the building for people to spend time in nature.

Two wards were initially opened in February to transfer people from beds in private services. All four wards are now open and taking in new admissions.

Wendy from the Coalition’s mental health team joined members of staff from Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust at a sleepover in the building in January, to stress test the building and identify any issues. Some initial problems are being worked through with the contractor. Early feedback from the sleepover and from service users has led to acoustics being improved in some rooms, additional artwork being installed around the building and the ambulance bay being made more welcoming. There are now plans to install some benches in front of the building for people to sit with family, friends and visitors. Surrey and Borders have also been granted some charitable funds to work with a mural artist to improve the look of the ward gardens.

The project has been shortlisted for two Design in Mental Health Awards, one recognising the way people with lived experience have contributed to the project as a whole, and another for the artwork which was designed by a local artist working alongside people with lived experience.

Wendy has spent the last three years speaking to people who use mental health services, their families and carers about their priorities for this project and representing their thoughts and experiences throughout the design and delivery of the building. She says it’s rewarding to look at the building and see how the ideas and views people expressed have been incorporated into the final result. Her work on the project will continue with gathering feedback from people who have been admitted to Silverwood about their experience of the space, and taking part in a Lessons Learnt workshop to review the whole journey from the design of Silverwood to where we are now.

A short video about the story of Silverwood can be seen on YouTube: https://youtu.be/r79Ds-aIf38?si=zplQfb4uI9wNnULk