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- NZILA Award of Excellence Landscapes of Care — 2024
We believe Te Wao Nui is an exemplary landscape of care for the values which underpin the project of kaitiakitanga, equitable access to paediatric healthcare, promotion of rongoa, and provision for kids and their parents in a time of stress and anxiety. We also think the technical expertise required for designing a fun yet safe playscape on a constrained on a base isolated podium, one floor above ground, with lush planting for children with myriad health issues from sight impairment to mobility impairment, makes this project exceptional.
Te Wao Nui Childrens Hospital in Wellington has successfully created a series of spaces with a sense of calm and adventure including the entry ramps and gardens, and the play / rehabilitation space.
The entry landscape with ramps, balustrade, and planting, creates a jungle like experience in line with the hospital’s big forest theme, while also helping to de-institutionalise a care facility that traditionally can be intimidating for young children.
The children’s play area is colourful and adventurous and incorporates careful research into the needs of a rehabilitation space for children. Staff noted that the overall design spaces and building of Te Wao Nui, being more family friendly create a caring space that has successfully broken down some of the barriers that families with a fear of attending medical facilities feel more at ease and have the ability to accommodate their whole whanau.
Local, Te Whatu Ora
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