Box Hill Adolescent Acute Mental Health Unit

A 12 bed Adolescent Unit catering for inpatients in a suburban setting. Interiors were designed to be calming and robust. Curved roofs, cream blockwork and large expanses of glazing were used to provide a positive, reassuring and welcoming place for its residents, with colours sympathetic to the streetscape. Two blade walls of glazed bricks define the activity space that opens up onto the main courtyard. Staff observation and patient privacy are balanced with the use of open interiors and minimal corridors. ESD principles included the use of displacement ventilation in bedrooms, a first for mental health units in Victoria. Completed in 2008.