MALVERN Community Hospital has won major plaudits for its design and build.

The newly-constructed 24-bed community hospital received a highly commended award in the community benefit category at the 2011 Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors West Mid-lands Construction and Awards dinner. The £17.7million state-of-the-art hospital in Worcester Road, Malvern Link, aimed to provide modern facilities within a creatively used space, while also allowing maximum flexibility for future growth. The hospital has in and out patient treatment areas, an X-ray department, an out-of-hours GP surgery, a minor injuries unit and support services. The eco-friendly design also uses geothermal ground source heat pumps for heating, cooling and hot water, and combined heat and power for low carbon electricity.

Martin Perks, the RICS West Midlands regional chair, said: “There was an exceptionally high calibre of submissions to the community benefit category and I’d like to congratulate all those involved in the Malvern Comm-unity Hospital project for their impressive achievement. The project greatly deserves this award.”

The RICS judges said: “This is a lovely project that makes excellent use of the site. The internal design is very pleasing, well lit and functional, while the rest of the site offers areas that are excellently planned and superbly delivered.”

Interserve was awarded the contract to build the new Malvern Community Hospital.