Planning permission has been granted to Great Ormond Street hospital for a £65m research facility to be constructed close to its base in central London.

The building will be known as the Centre for Research Into Rare Disease in Children and it’s understood that Skanska and Bouygues are in the running for the two-round bidding process for the core development which it’s thought will cost £45m.



The building will be seven-storeys high and will create both a clinical and research centre in which existing expertise from Great Ormond Street and University College London (and in particular the Institute of Child Health) will be brought together under the same roof.



The new building and research equipment will cost around £65m (with the purchase of the land there is a maximum estimated cost of £90m) and will cover 140,000 sq ft, enabling clinicians and research specialists to work side-by-side to further understand rare diseases in children by identifying new treatments as well as manufacturing new innovative medical devices.



As part of the design created by architect Stanton Williams, the lower laboratories will be visible to the general public through extensive street level glazing as the primary construction material that envelopes the lower parts of the building.

Stanton Williams’ director Gavin Henderson said: ‘The building has been carefully designed to be sensitive to its context within a conservation area, revitalise the streetscape and give public expression to the important scientific endeavours within.

‘Internally, the design of the new centre promotes interaction between patients and research staff. Extensive glazing offering views into the lower ground laboratories and a carefully articulated network of vertical terracotta fins gives a strong visual identity to the facades opposite Coram’s Fields, reflecting the public significance of the building and the important work taking place inside.’

Construction is expected to commence in October this year with the building opening in 2018, in which elements of the design, which aim to increase interaction between patients and researchers, will be tested. This is more great news for the construction industry increasing the demand for construction supplies and creating a large number of consruction jobs on the project.