NHS Royal Berkshire Hospital
Creating a garden sanctuary for patients at Royal Berkshire Hospital
Building a garden sanctuary for patients
WoodBlocX were approached by garden designer Jennifer Benyon in 2015 to come up with a solution for planting at the new Englefield courtyard garden at the Royal Berskhire NHS Hospital – a garden sanctuary for patients.
The Englefield Charitable Trust funded the creation of the garden in partnership with the Royal Berks Charity in memory of philanthropist Sir William Benyon of the Englefield Estate, who founded the Trust in 1968. Named The Englefield Garden, the charitable project marks the Trust’s 50th anniversary and decades of support for a range of good causes across Berkshire.
On the project vision, Jennifer Benyon said: “I wanted to create a space where people could get a cup of tea from the café, then sit outside unobserved, where they could have some seclusion, greenery and peacefulness; somewhere to have a quiet moment.”
Perfect planting solution
The WoodBlocX design team worked on designs and subsequent revisions using AutoCAD to create 3D drawings. All components were predrilled and sawn before being sent to site for construction and all soil volume requirements were provided.
The design included large circular planters with bespoke integrated seating. WoodBlocX standard components were used to achieve this build with each block being pre-drilled and cut to size.
Speaking on the completed project Jennifer Benyon states: “The Englefield Garden has been a huge success; the courtyard has been transformed into a peaceful haven for patients, visitors and staff alike. Their delight in the space has been incredibly moving. I have lost count of the number of people who have admired the raised beds, they look fabulous and are perfect containers for permanent planting. I couldn’t be happier.”
