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St Barts Hospital
Restoration of Lanterns
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Few places in London carry a history as continuous as St Bartholomew’s Hospital. Founded in the 12th century and still serving patients today, “St Barts” had endured fires, plagues, war, and waves of rebuilding, its architecture layered with centuries of medical progress and civic duty. To work here was not simply to build, but to intervene within a living institution where past and present operated side by side.
DBR entered the project during the PCSA phase of a two-stage Design & Build contract, a period devoted not to visible construction, but to shaping what would come next.
Client
St Bartholomew’s Hospital
Dates
31 Mar 2025
—
21 Aug 2025
Location
London
Grade listing
Grade I
Fabric
Lead
Planning Before the First Stone Is Touched
This early phase allowed DBR to collaborate closely with the client and design team, guiding the project’s development through to RIBA Stage 4. The aim was to resolve the design fully, technically, structurally, and regulatorily, before transitioning into the main construction stage.
Behind the scenes, method statements were drafted, temporary works strategies prepared, and specialist packages coordinated. Every detail was tested for buildability, ensuring that the future works would proceed with clarity rather than improvisation.
Working Where Care Never Stops
Unlike many construction sites, St Barts could not pause for restoration. The hospital remained fully operational, its wards, corridors, and services in constant use. Planning therefore revolved around minimising disruption to clinical activity while safeguarding patients, staff, and visitors.
DBR managed logistics and sequencing with particular care, coordinating deliveries, access routes, and working hours to fit around the rhythms of healthcare rather than interrupt them.
Learning from the Building Itself
Before any major intervention could be designed, the condition of the historic fabric had to be understood. Investigative works formed a crucial part of the phase: detailed condition surveys, material sampling, and structural assessments were undertaken to reveal how the building had aged and where it required attention.
These findings shaped the restoration strategy, ensuring that proposed works responded to real conditions rather than assumptions.
Navigating Permissions and Protections
At a site of such historic and operational importance, statutory approvals were as critical as technical solutions. DBR supported the client in preparing documentation for planning and listed building consent, coordinating submissions and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.
Working alongside the Principal Designer, the team also contributed to key safety documentation, including fire and emergency planning and strategies for phased occupation should parts of the hospital need to remain in use during future works.
Safety as Structure, Not Afterthought
Under the Building Safety Act 2022 and amended regulations, DBR assumed the role of Principal Contractor, carrying significant legal responsibilities for this Higher-Risk Building project. During the PCSA phase, they helped develop core frameworks such as the Construction Control Plan, Mandatory Occurrence Reporting Plan, and Change Control Plan, documents designed to embed safety and accountability into every stage of the project.
Their involvement ensured that compliance was not something added later, but something built into the project’s foundations.
Before cranes shaped the skyline, the PCSA phase defined the project’s success: testing strategies, anticipating risks, and refining solutions. At St Bartholomew’s, DBR’s careful, essential work balanced heritage, safety, and patient care, guiding the hospital’s next chapter with deliberate intention.
