The Reuben Young People’s Centre
We were delighted to play a part in the redesign of The Reuben Young People’s Centre at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. Imagining up artwork for murals and lightboxes to be installed as part of the hospital’s innovative Best For You programme, created thanks to a generous donation from the Reuben Foundation.
The artwork we created for the Reuben Young People’s Centre is all based around the idea of a day out sightseeing and shopping in Northwest London. Aimed at inspiring, uplifting and distracting the children who pass through the ward by giving them lots of vibrant and fun designs to look at and interact with, whether they are in for a stay, having a treatment or visiting a loved one.
Client
Chelsea & Westminster Hospital
Project Duration:
2024-25
Our designs were inspired by famous landmarks in areas of London around the hospital such as the Natural History and Science museums, The Royal Albert Bridge, London Zoo and London’s delicious indoor markets. As usual our designs had plenty to look at and were filled with cool animal characters, escaped dinosaurs, marvellous transportation and beautiful city wildlife. The murals were created for a variety of different rooms including the treatment and playroom, cots bays, family seating areas and elements were taken from these designs to create the ward general signage
Murals and lightboxes in the cot bays were specifically created to resemble the black and white sensory patterns that aid babies’ development, and that they find easier to distinguish than colour, and our black and white designs with vivid pops of colour were also designed to emulate the work of fellow ward artist Jo Peel to lend a cohesive look to the different design elements within the ward. We hope that parents, staff and most importantly children will enjoy our magical version of London.
About the redesign – Taken from the CW website
A design focused on young patients
CW+ worked closely with clinicians, the hospital’s Play Team and the project architects to rethink the ward’s layout. The redesign improves functionality, enhances patient flow and turns the Reuben Young People’s Centre into an imaginative, child-friendly environment.
The transformation aimed to make the ward more comfortable, accessible and inclusive for children and young people being cared for in hospital under West London Children’s Healthcare, which brings together specialist services for children across Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
Art played a key role in transforming the ward. CW+ commissioned two artist practices, Sas & Yosh and Jo Peel, to create murals and wayfinding inspired by the spectacular London views from the fourth floor of Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. Their work brings the ward to life with colourful, engaging designs that appeal to both younger children and teenagers. The Best For You colour palette, which was developed with input from young people, ties everything together to create a warm, uplifting space.
Sarah Bellisario - Artist Creatrix 