The interior design of this children’s hospital is an outstanding exercise in cohesion, engagement and vibrancy. Making the child’s visit as stress-free as possible was at the forefront, and the resulting design strategy has responded to this brief through the intelligent use of colour, wayfinding and artwork. Encompassing a family-centred care model that considers the child – as well as the parents, sisters, brothers and grandparents – the interiors utilise evidence-based design principles to create a new benchmark for hospital design. The six-storey light-filled atrium is the main public thoroughfare. It features key design strategies, or designed ‘distractions’, intented to ‘heal’ sick children through positive experiences and joyful environments. The wayfinding strategy utilises different colour schemes on each level, with each scheme celebrating the natural forms, colours and textures of particular Victorian landscapes. This project is not only a benchmark for its typology, it is contemporary interior design at its very best.
“The level of detail directed at children is amazingly engaging for them, and the furniture is magical.” – Natasha Palich, IDEA 2012 jury member
Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne, Billard Leece Partnership & Bates Smart
