NHS Christie’s £150m Paterson cancer research centre completes

Destroyed by fire in 2017, the 270,000 sq ft facility stands 10 storeys high and is almost double the size of its predecessor.

Contractor Integrated Health Projects, a joint venture between VINCI Building and Sir Robert McAlpine, has completed its delivery of The Christie NHS Foundation Trust’s Paterson building off Wilmslow Road in Withington.

The JV was formed in 2003 specifically to carry out NHS construction projects and replaced Interserve as the scheme’s contractor in December 2019.

The project has provided more than 113,300 sq ft of laboratory and research space over four floors, as well as 92,000 sq ft of consultant workspace.

Part of the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, The Paterson is a result of a partnership between The Christie, Cancer Research UK, and The University of Manchester. The building will house scientists, clinicians, and operational staff, who will carry out clinical trials.

The £150m scheme was funded partly by investment from the partnership, as well as charitable funding.

Managing director of IHP and VINCI Building, John Roberts, said: “Bringing together the science community and acute hospital in this manner opens a collaborative environment that will help The Christie NHS Foundation Trust stay at the forefront of treatment and care for their patients, for many years to come.”

Roger Spencer, chief executive at The Christie, added: “Having so many different specialists collaborating together under one roof will help us achieve our ambition to make the facility one of the top five cancer research centres in the world.”

Plans for the research centre were approved in August 2019.

Turley was the planning consultant for the scheme, while architect BDP designed the project. Also on the project team was structural, civil, and building services engineer Arup and project manager Arcadis.

Ged Couser, principal architect at BDP, said: “This building adds a striking new addition to the Manchester skyline, delivering a technologically advanced structure that is already raising the profile of academic collaboration and R&D in the North of England.”

Tom Finch, associate at Arcadis, added: “With a great deal of care and determination taken to understand the project and its impact, and working alongside an exceptional delivery team, including IHP, Imtech, CCTech, Actua, and the critical stakeholders, we have created a facility that we can proudly state will be improving the quality of life for many, many people.”

Matthew Holden, director and Manchester building engineering leader at Arup, commented: “Reflecting the collaboration principles of ‘team science’, our multidisciplinary team has ensured that the new Paterson Building can deliver its pioneering clinical trials while futureproofing it by design so scientific discovery is at its forefront.

“We’re proud to have helped deliver a world-class space which will not only impact the individual through improved cancer treatments but also accelerate the city of Manchester’s contribution to global medical innovation”.

More about the scheme can be found by searching for application number 123748/FO/2019 on Manchester City Council’s planning portal.