We are delighted to be acting as Lead Consultant on SECAmb’s new multi-use centre near Gillingham, Kent. This will be the 8th Make Ready Centre/Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) we have delivered for SECAmb & with the other functions incorporated into the building, it represents the largest such facility in England.
The proposed building will total approximately 4050msq. Out of that total, 1851msq is allocated to the Make Ready Centre, whilst the remaining 2199msq is divided equally between the 111 and EOC call centre departments. A total of 35 ambulance, 168 standard and 7 disabled car parking spaces are planned.
The proposed multi-use centre is subdivided into 3 of SECAmb’s key facility roles. Firstly, the ground and first floors will be dedicated to the ‘Make Ready’ department. The Make Ready concept focusses on the turnaround and maintenance of ambulances, so that crews are able to hand over a vehicle that is fully serviced and ready for each shift.
Secondly, an Emergency Operations Centre is proposed. The EOC layout situated on the second floor is then repeated on the top floor, but this level will be dedicated the ‘111’ telephone service. For want of a better description, the top 2 floors can be considered similar to a call centre office facility, although the specialist nature of the calls, and their importance to the trust’s commitment to patient safety is significant.
The EOC at Gillingham will use many of the lessons we’ve learnt from previous EOC projects, such as the one at Crawley, shown below.
With planning approval already in place, we are predicting a commencement date in January 2021 and completion currently estimated in May 2022.
For more information on our work with the NHS Trusts in England, please contact David Edwards on 01372 360663 or email us on info@chawtonhill.com
For more information on our role in delivering Make Ready Centres, please see: