Cardigan – A Rich History
Cardigan Memorial Hospital in Ceredigion proposes the demolition of existing hospital buildings, but retention of the remaining parts of the Nash-designed Priory House- an unlisted heritage asset dating from 1792. We originally proposed 34 new one-bed dwellings for older people to take the place of the demolished buildings, alongside a new office building for Wales & West Housing; a ‘Cambria’ storage building, a public café within the restored Priory House, and associated landscaping and car parking.
Community Ties
Despite the damage caused to Nash’s Priory House by the hospital development, the people of Cardigan still hold it very close to their heart. For them, Priory House is seen as an important part of the town’s heritage. Moreover, it has the quality needed to reinforce the town’s growing confidence in its past as a means of underpinning its future.
A Landmark Quality
For many local residents, a view of the Nash house from the approach over the Priory Bridge is sacrosanct. It certainly helps deliver the kind of landmark quality the client and community were looking for. Therefore, our concept builds on the idea of saving the Nash House and gives it a central focus in the view from Priory Bridge and the South.
The Resident’s Courtyard
The courtyard is the heart of the scheme for residents. The upper-floor balconies are complemented by a ‘cloistered’ ground floor with a spine corridor arrangement, inspired by Nash’s vaults.
Community Consultation
The planning consultation for the project took place during Covid restrictions. Accordingly, it was impossible to arrange a typical exhibition format for explaining the scheme to interested local residents. We therefore made videos uploaded to YouTube (in both Welsh and English) where we presented the project in detail. All whilst socially distancing and working outside during filming!