Colander

Evelina Children's Hospital, London

This competition was managed by Louise Harrison whilst at the RIBA Competitions Office.

The project was a New Women and Children's hospital.

Winners

Hopkins Architects

Process

2 stage design competition. Stage 1: Expression of Interest and Stage 2: design phase with five teams.

Our involvement

  • Designing the right competitive process
  • Researching and identifying potential competitors to alert to the competition
  • Advertising the competition in print and on-line media
  • Writing the competition rules
  • Appointing an Architect Assessor to write the competition brief
  • Planning the competition timetable and budget to meet client requirements
  • Acting as point of contact for the competition
  • Ensuring a clear and ethical process
  • Briefing the jury panel
  • Briefing competitors
  • Managing the competitive process
  • Liaising with the client’s procurement team to ensure a compliant process
  • Advising on and then managing the scoring/evaluation procedures
  • Arranging and facilitate interviews and presentations
  • Maintaining confidentiality
  • Creating an audit trail
  • Assisting with press and media enquiries and coverage
  • Competition administration
  • Debriefing and follow up

“The Trust decided to hold two further architectural competitions in 2010 for the design of a Cancer Treatment Centre at Guy's Hospital and for the external façade refurbishment of the East Wing at St Thomas' Hospital. I had no hesitation in asking Louise to provide the management support that we needed to guide us through running two major competitions at the same time. I am delighted with the outcome of both and I am sure that the resulting buildings will be highly successful. The experience, knowledge and skill that Louise has developed over the years makes her a great asset to any client involved in procuring architects and other professional consultants.”

— Alastair Gourlay, Director of Asset Management, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust

Facts

  • This was a very high profile competition within the health sector and that, once announced, attracted interest from around the world.
  • The competition was widely advertised to attract international as well as national teams.
  • This was to be the first new children’s hospital to be built in London for over 100 years and the Hospital Trust wanted it to set new standards of healthcare.
  • This was a client group that cared very much about consultation throughout the competition process and it was necessary to organise the programme to allow for interaction during the second stage with staff and end users.
  • Consultation was also extended to the local Planning Authority, English Heritage and Lambeth Palace.
  • The competition involved a rigorous procurement route based on the OJEU
  • Processes and was managed in close consultation with the Trust’s procurement team.