60 Year Anniversary for the Practice! 5/4/2024Robert Potter and PartnersRobert Potter and Partners were established on 5th April 1964 and we are celebrating our 60th year in practice.
Robert Potter and Partners were established on 5th April 1964 and we are celebrating our 60th year in practice. We have developed significant expertise in a wide range of building types and have delivered projects across the UK.
Our team have particular specialisms in Conservation & Historic Buildings, Low Energy & Passivhaus, Dementia Design, Retrofit, Social Housing, Healthcare, Masterplanning, and designing to mitigate Climate Change.
Thank you to our many loyal clients, our great team, and to the many professionals we collaborate with every day on such a variety of projects!
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Official Opening of the Goathill Care and Residential Project 25/3/2024Robert Potter and PartnersMaree Todd MSP and Joe Fitzpatrick MSP opened the Goathill dementia care, extra care and residential development.
Maree Todd MSP, Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport and Joe Fitzpatrick MSP, Minister for Local Government Empowerment and Planning officially opened the Goathill Project Development at a ceremony in Stornoway, on a fine sunny day.
The Goathill Development Project consists of the 52 bedroom Taigh Shiphoirt (Seaforth House) Care Home, 50 Unit Bremner Court Housing with Extra Care development and 74 affordable homes.
The development was delivered by Comhairle nan Eilean Siar & Hebridean Housing Partnership in conjunction with the Western Isles Integration Joint Board.
The project team worked closely with the Dementia Services Development Centre at the University of Stirling to achieve a dementia-friendly environment. Taigh Shiphoirt was designed with four wings for small group living, arranged around safe courtyard spaces. This design maximises natural daylight and has provided a welcoming, familiar environment for residents.
Taigh Shìphoirt also accommodates a daycare facility occupied by Solas (Alzheimer Scotland), a corporate training suite and a new location for the Faire community alarm service.
Bremner Court provides a 15-bed respite facility on the ground floor with 35 flats on the first and second floors which enable people to live independently in their own home while having support provided to meet each individual’s specific needs.
The 74 homes on Sinclair Avenue are a mix of 16 shared equity with the remainder being for rent. There is a mix of family and one bedroom accommodation. The homes are heated by air source heat pumps and are highly insulated to minimise running costs for households.
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Andrew Northway becomes an Associate 1/2/2024Robert Potter and PartnersAndrew Northway, Chartered Architect and Passivhaus Designer, has been made an Associate in the practice.
Robert Potter and Partners are pleased to announce the promotion of Andrew Northway to the role of Associate. This recognises Andrew’s dedication, skills, and commitment to the practice.
Andrew joined us in 2017 and qualified as a Chartered Architect in 2020. Andrew is an invaluable member of our team, involved in a range of buildings including healthcare, residential and Passivhaus. Andrew recently qualified a Certified European Passive House Designer, showcasing a commitment to high-performance, energy-efficient building standards. This expertise aligns seamlessly with our values and dedication to creating places that not only meet the needs of our clients and end users but also contribute positively to the environment.
This promotion recognises what Andrew has achieved with the practice to date and anticipates Andrew’s future contributions as an integral part of our leadership team.
Congratulations Andrew on this well-deserved promotion!
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SURF Award for Goathill 14/12/2023Robert Potter and PartnersGoathill Housing and Care Home Project in Stornoway won the 2023 SURF Award for Housing and Regeneration.
The Goathill project has won the SURF Award 2023 for Housing and Regeneration. The development was an ambitious initiative by Hebridean Housing Partnership and Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar to meet the varying needs of the Western Isles population, with particular emphasis on the elderly.
The development delivered a 52-bed residential care home, 50 housing with extra care flats, 58 homes for social rent, and 16 Homes for sale through the shared equity scheme.
SURF is Scotland’s Regeneration Forum, promoting best practice in community regeneration. This was the 25th Anniversary of the SURF Awards and the judges’ citation said:
Uncategorized Comments Off on SURF Award for GoathillThe judges were impressed by the ambition of the project, and the overall enthusiasm, collaboration and partnership approach to delivery shone through at every level. The project successfully incorporates a range of tenures, including affordable housing and provision for people with additional care needs, to create a whole new neighbourhood.
The judges reflected that the development felt settled and complete, incorporating design features which complemented the existing environment and island style. The wider community benefits achieved through procurement were also evident including shared apprenticeship schemes, improved road infrastructure and additional space for play.
The accommodation for care had been designed based on a firm foundation of research and frontline engagement. The result includes personalised spaces for the delighted residents and much improved working environments for staff, leading to healthier and happier lives and a real positive addition for the wider islands provision.
New Certified Passive House Designer 4/12/2023Robert Potter and PartnersAndrew Northway, based in our Glasgow Office, has qualified as a Certified European Passive House Designer.
We are pleased to announce that Andrew Northway has qualified as a Certified European Passive House Designer. Congratulations on passing this challenging exam! We now have 4 in house Certified European Passive House Designers / Consultants, all certified by the Passivhaus Institut in Darmstadt.
Andrew was involved in the recently completed Certified Passive Houses for West of Scotland Housing Association in Dalmarnock, which can be seen on the International Passivhaus Database and provided 36 homes to complete the Commonwealth Games Athletes Village masterplan.
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Building Better Healthcare Award for Goathill 1/11/2023Robert Potter and PartnersThe Goathill care development has received a BBH Award for “biggest impact on patient experience and outcomes”.
We were delighted to attend the Building Better Healthcare Awards 2023 on behalf of our client Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar (Western Isles Council), where the Goathill development won the Clinician’s Choice Special Award for the recently completed Goathill development.
This special award is presented to the entry across all categories that the judging panel’s clinical representative deems has had the biggest impact on the patient experience and outcomes. The judges had the mammoth task of sifting through all entries across all categories to pick those they believe have had the biggest positive impact on patients and healthcare workers.
From major hospital developments and interior design projects, to innovative software solutions and individual pieces of furniture, the judges reward the entries which best support the delivery of high-quality, modern medical services.
In this year’s judging, they described the winning entries as imaginative, inclusive, sympathetic, practical and engaging.
This Award is a great accolade for Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar and their vision of providing exemplar dementia care and extra care for the Western Isles community.
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Springfield Cross Certified Passivhaus Plaque Unveiled 31/10/2023Robert Potter and PartnersThe project team unveiled the official Passivhaus plaque today for the 36 flats at Springfield Cross.
The Springfield Cross flats in Dalmarnock form one large Passivhaus, containing 36 flats. The Passivhaus Institut in Darmstadt provide an official plaque for Certified Passive Houses, and this was unveiled by the Chief Executive of West of Scotland Housing Association today.
The building provides a variety of flats including 2 and 3 bedroom dwellings, and wheelchair-friendly homes with direct garden access, and the urban garden was looking good in its autumnal colours.
The detailed Passivhaus information for Springfield Cross can be seen on the International Passivhaus Database.
The Passivhaus standard ensures high quality of construction and energy performance, benefitting residents and working towards the City of Glasgow’s aspiration to be Net Zero.
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Parliamentary Motion recognises Goathill Housing and Care Home Project 5/10/2023Robert Potter and PartnersA motion has been submitted to the Scottish Parliament welcoming the positive impact of the Goathill housing and care project.
Parliamentary Motion S6M-10761 has welcomed the positive impact the project will have on the Western Isles’ care capacity and availability of housing.
The motion was submitted by Alasdair Allan MSP and the full text is:
“That the Parliament congratulates Goathill Housing and Care Home Project on being shortlisted in the Housing and Regeneration category of the prestigious 2023 SURF Awards for Best Practice in Community Regeneration, which identifies and celebrates best practice, innovation and achievement in interventions that improve Scottish communities; understands that this is the first housing and extra care housing project of its kind in the Na h-Eileanan an Iar constituency; further understands that the development comprises Taigh Shiphoirt (Seaforth House), which is a 52-bed residential care home with four wings to facilitate small group living, Bremner Court, which has 50 units of extra care housing with 24-hour staffing provision to support the residents, and Sinclair Avenue, which includes 58 homes for social rent and 16 homes for sale through a shared equity scheme; notes that the project was delivered by Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, in partnership with the Western Isles Integration Joint Board and the Hebridean Housing Partnership, with the care home and extra care housing constructed by McLaughlin & Harvey, and the home constructed by local firm O’Mac Construction; welcomes what it sees as the positive impact that the project will have on the islands’ care capacity and availability of housing; pays tribute to the hard work and determination of all involved in the project, and wishes them well for the 2023 SURF Awards.”
Supported by: Jeremy Balfour, Colin Beattie, Miles Briggs, Stephanie Callaghan, Annabelle Ewing, Kenneth Gibson, Emma Harper, Bill Kidd, Stuart McMillan, Kevin Stewart, Paul Sweeney, John Swinney, David Torrance, Sue Webber, Tess White
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Goathill Care Campus Completed 21/7/2023Robert Potter and Partners52 place dementia-friendly Care Home and 50 place Housing with Extra Care completed in Stornoway.
The Goathill development has been completed for a multi-partner agency bringing together Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (Lewis Council), Western Isles Integrated Joint Board, and Hebridean Housing Partnership.
It has created a dementia-friendly “care campus” which includes a 52 place Care Home named Taigh Shìphoirt (Seaforth House), Bremner Court which accommodates 50 Housing with Extra Care flats, 74 houses for Hebridean Housing Partnership, and shared care services including Community Mental Health Team, Specialist Dementia Nurses, Occupational Therapy, and the START Short Term Assessment and Reablement Team. The Care Home also provides the Community Alarm Centre and a Daycare centre for Solas (Alzheimer Scotland).
Taigh Shìphoirt accommodates 52 residents with dementia. A key strategy was planning for small group living, with 13 residents in 4 individual clusters, arranged around safe courtyard spaces. This maximises daylight and provides human scale and a homely environment.
Routes to the clusters are arranged around a central garden, assisting orientation for people moving through the building. The garden also adjoins the Daycare facility and Training suite. External finishes are durable including the use of local Gneiss stone from Harris quarry.
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