Morgan Sindall Construction’s Northern Home Counties business has celebrated a topping out ceremony at the Oak Wards healthcare facility in Milton Keynes on behalf of Milton Keynes University Hospital (MKUH) NHS Foundation Trust.
To mark the milestone, representatives from the Morgan Sindall team, Milton Keynes Mayor Councillor Marie Bradburn, City Council Chief Executive Michael Bracey, and MKUH staff members gathered to the site to enjoy speeches and sign the concrete frame.
Procured through Pagabo’s Major Works Framework, The Oak Wards expansion at MKUH will boost capacity with two new 24-bed wards. Each ward will include four five-bed bays and four single bedrooms, along with essential support spaces such as storage areas, utility rooms, offices, a ward kitchen, and staff facilities.
Both storeys follow a rectangular layout, centred around a nurse’s station and designed with large windows to maximise natural light. This efficient design mirrors an existing ward at MKUH, allowing staff to work in a familiar environment from day one.
In line with Morgan Sindall’s sustainability commitments, the new Oak Wards facility will be powered by roof-mounted air source heat pumps. The building’s façade, services, and insulation have been designed to exceed current energy efficiency and thermal performance standards. Additionally, a concrete frame has been used in place of steel to help lower embodied carbon.
At ground level, sustainable drainage systems – including swales and a rain garden – will manage rainwater naturally. Morgan Sindall’s landscaping works will aim to achieve a 10% biodiversity net gain through the planting of trees, wildflowers, and the installation of habitats such as bat boxes and insect hotels.
Given the site’s proximity to key hospital buildings, construction activities have been carefully coordinated to minimise disruption to daily operations. These measures have been crucial when creating the link adjacent to MKUH’s Emergency Department (ED), an important vein of the hospital’s daily activities.
As part of Morgan Sindall’s commitment to sustainability, the team has implemented its 10 Tonne Challenge throughout the Oak Wards development. This encourages the project team to work with consultants and the supply chain to find intelligent solutions that reduces carbon from the construction process by a minimum of 10 tonnes.
Throughout Oak Wards, 45 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent has been saved. This has been achieved by changing the foundation from piled to pad, reducing the overall concrete required by over 50%, as well as using an RC frame instead of steel, reducing total carbon emissions by 60%. In addition, the team also executed the planned use of 35% Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag (GBBS) concrete, one of the greenest construction materials.
Emma Curtis, Area Director for Morgan Sindall Construction in the Northern Home Counties, said: “It’s been wonderful to celebrate our progress on the Oak Wards expansion here at Milton Keynes University Hospital with a topping out ceremony. This work is key to supporting the local communities with high-end healthcare services for many years to come, and it’s a real privilege to be a part of that.
“We thoroughly enjoy working closely and collaboratively with Milton Keynes University Hospital to deliver such state-of-the-art medical facilities, and it’s been great to gather together to mark this important milestone.”
Joe Harrison, Chief Executive Officer at Milton Keynes University Hospital (MKUH), said: “Milton Keynes is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country and we are committed to providing the best experience for more and more patients.
“As our community grows, we recognise that it is also ageing. In response to this, I am delighted to reveal that Oak Wards will become our specialist frailty care unit, providing a vital response to the specific needs of our older residents.”
Morgan Sindall has also recently handed over a two-storey Radiotherapy Centre to MKUH, further supporting the hospital to meet the healthcare demands of Milton Keynes’ growing population.
