A broad, overhanging roof provides shelter to a wrap-around patio at the newest Maggie’s Centre, designed by London-based Stephen Marshall Architects for Northampton General Hospital in England.
Situated on what was previously a car park on the hospital grounds, Maggie’s Northampton is a two-storey building featuring expansive floor-to-ceiling glazing on the lower level. The upper floor is contained within a distinctive pitched roof that defines the building’s profile.
This building is the latest addition to the Maggie’s network, a charity that creates welcoming spaces for cancer patients and their families, offering an environment that feels more like a home than a conventional hospital.
The design features a square plan with a patio that wraps around the building, accessed through several tall oak doors and protected by the projecting roof above.
The roof is clad in perforated white metal panels, finished with angular, zigzagged edges. Stephen Marshall Architects drew inspiration from white marquee tents when designing the dynamic roofline.
The intention was to create a striking and inviting building that contrasts with the hospital’s traditional brick architecture, making the centre easily identifiable and approachable.
“The white perforated roof panels and angled profiles of the building conjure up the appearance of a marquee, a building type that tends to be associated with life’s happier events,” explained Stephen Marshall Architects.
“Its distinctive appearance helps visitors locate the building as they approach from oncology for the first time.”
Five square skylights are placed at the centre of Maggie’s Northampton, bringing daylight into the staircase and the ground floor library beneath.
Also on the ground floor are a kitchen, dining area, and informal gathering spaces furnished with sofas, along with a flexible room intended for exercise classes and talks.
On the first floor, staff offices and additional meeting rooms are located within the sloping roof structure.
The building is surrounded by landscaped gardens created by Arne Maynard Garden Design. These gardens can be enjoyed from the patio and are visible throughout most of the ground floor thanks to the tall windows.
“The overhanging roof and continuous deck allow people to move around the building, enjoying different views of the garden, and to sit outside in a range of weather conditions,” noted Stephen Marshall Architects.
“This highlights one of the central ideas at Maggie’s Northampton: to blur the boundary between inside and outside.”
Other Maggie’s Centres previously featured on Dezeen include a curving centre in London by Studio Libeskind and a mirrored building in Southampton by AL_A.
Photography by Richard Bryant.
Project credits:
Architect: Stephen Marshall Architects
Interior designer: Designers Guild
Landscape designer: Arne Maynard Garden Design
Contractor: Robert McAlpine
Structural engineer: Les Postawa Associates
Services engineer: HFL Design Limited
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