Student Design Awards 2021 winners

The AfH Student Design Awards challenge students of architecture and design to explore innovative and compassionate design for health and social care settings.

This is an annual design competition for students and 2021 marks our 13th year, having taken a pause in 2020 due to the pandemic. As well as promoting good design, AfH is committed to encouraging the next generation to become passionate about the quality of design for health and social care settings. Our goal is to celebrate the opportunities for innovation and experimentation and to bring together students from different disciplines to share their creative ideas. We are keen to engage students within all design disciplines, including landscape, public art, interior design and architecture.

2020 saw a step change in the way we deliver healthcare services in the UK. Covid-19 accelerated long-planned programmes of digital transformation, including the immediate adoption of virtual consultations and digital delivery of outpatient services. Surging patient numbers necessitated swift adaptation of existing healthcare spaces, the creation of temporary hospitals, new step-down facilities and a heightened focus on function – and flexibility. Arguable, the emphasis on wellbeing – both for patients and staff – was watered down. Post-pandemic, what does this mean for our healthcare environments?

The AfH Student Design Awards 2021 are sponsored by ADP, Ryder Architecture, HKS Architects, Scott Tallon Walker Architects and P+HS Architects.