Discover how Belfast’s new maternity hospital combines cutting-edge facilities with a hotel-inspired design to better support mothers and their newborns.
The new Royal Jubilee Maternity Hospital in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is a state-of-the-art facility designed to provide leading maternity care for women during pregnancy, childbirth and the postnatal period.
Appointed by the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust as lead architect, we collaborated with partners Isherwood + Ellis to develop a concept design for the new facility that carefully considered each stage of the maternity journey.
Now complete, the hospital is set to support more than 5,000 women who rely on Royal Jubilee Maternity Services each year.
Wellbeing and recovery at the heart of design
The new maternity hospital is part of the broader development of Belfast’s Royal Victoria Hospital that is replacing outdated facilities no longer fit for purpose.
Spread over three storeys and covering 17,000 square metres, it will provide comprehensive care for mothers and babies – from routine deliveries to those requiring specialised care.
To meet the vision for future maternity care outlined in the Northern Ireland maternity strategy, we designed each aspect of the new hospital to normalise pregnancy and birth.
We achieved this by placing the mother, baby and supporting family members at the centre of our design approach to aid recovery and reduce the length of stays.
Upon arrival, women and visitors are greeted by a bright and spacious glazed atrium which contains easy waymarking to pre or postnatal facilities. Delivery suites, obstetric theatres, en-suite rooms with birthing pools, and a neonatal care unit all conveniently located on one floor.
Additionally, there is an early pregnancy unit, a midwifery-led unit, and a maternity ward – as well as other facilities including a cocoon-shaped quiet room for bereaved parents and families. There is also a 10-bed ward located directly above the theatres to support high-risk antenatal and postnatal women.
Transforming clinical spaces
To further reduce the clinical atmosphere, our design includes several features to help make women feel safe, reassured and calm during their stay.
These include:
- Birthing room options: birthing rooms are equipped with various options such as birthing pools, medicine balls, ropes and labour stools, empowering women’s birthing choices.
- Overnight accommodation: rooms for family members to stay overnight and support mothers and neonatal babies until they are discharged.
- Concealed medical equipment: piped medical gas and tubes are hidden behind bespoke panels in the patient rooms.
- Natural light and privacy: full-length windows with electronic blinds allow for natural light whilst maintaining privacy.
- Artwork: the neonatology unit is decorated with watercolour illustrations by local artist Anita Jeram, adding a sense of play and colour throughout the ward.
Engaging stakeholders in the design process was crucial. We facilitated one-to-one mock-ups of key neonatal spaces at the design stage, ensuring midwives and doctors could confirm the rooms met the needs of both staff and patients.
Bringing new life to maternity care in Belfast
The new hospital, which was built beside the existing maternity hospital to reduce service disruption, is going through final stages of preparation before opening to the public.
When it does, it will not only provide greater resilience for the Royal Jubilee Maternity Services, but it will also set a new standard for maternity care across the UK and Ireland – demonstrating how thoughtful design can create a more supportive environment for mothers and their babies.