News — May 18, 2026

BVN appointed to design team for James Paget Hospital, UK

Plans to design and develop a replacement James Paget Hospital in Great Yarmouth, UK, have progressed, with Perkins&Will appointed as the lead consultant and BVN engaged to provide design advisory and peer review services.

Image by Perkins&Will

The major healthcare project is part of the UK Government’s New Hospital Programme (NHP) and uses a newly developed modularised Hospital 2.0 system, with a human-centred design approach.

BVN strengthens the multidisciplinary project team, drawing on more than 50 years of experience designing and delivering significant hospital developments across Australia and Asia. Projects such as the Canberra Hospital Expansion, the John Hunter Health and Innovation Precinct and the Acute Services Building at Prince of Wales Hospital will inform the team’s thinking around standardised design, operational efficiency and the delivery of flexible, future-focused environments aligned with the ambitions of the UK’s hospital modernisation programme.

We look forward to bringing a fresh set of eyes to the project, informed by our international experience in delivering innovative healthcare environments that adopt a standardised design framework. Working closely with the wider team, our focus will be on creating spaces that support clinical excellence, enhance the patient, staff, and visitor experience, and deliver long-term value to the Great Yarmouth community. This project is an exciting opportunity to contribute new thinking to healthcare design in the UK while responding sensitively to the region's needs.

Stephanie Costelloe, BVN Principal

A human-centred design approach

The design for James Paget’s new hospital has been developed in alignment with the NHP’s Hospital 2.0 guidelines, underpinned by a holistic approach to sustainability and regenerative design that informs the vision for the new campus. The scheme adopts Modern Methods of Construction, utilising repeatable designs within a standardised Hospital 2.0 approach.

The master plan sets out a long-term vision for a healthcare and education campus that can evolve over time. While the main RAAC hospital will be demolished, a number of James Paget’s existing buildings will be retained, including both older structures requiring refurbishment and recently completed facilities. The master plan integrates these buildings into a coherent framework that connects existing and new healthcare assets with future developments.

The project will be one of the largest construction schemes in the area for decades and is expected to act as a catalyst for economic growth and employment opportunities across the region.

The revitalised James Paget Hospital is expected to open to patients in 2033.

As BVN approaches its 100-year milestone, this is a pivotal moment in the practice’s global growth and in the evolution of our UK studio.

Over recent years, we’ve been steadily strengthening our design relationships across the region, which has led to several exciting project wins and a strong pipeline of opportunities. The James Paget hospital project reflects the kind of meaningful, ambitious work we want to contribute to - projects that add real depth to our portfolio and create lasting value for communities. We’re here to collaborate, to bring together global expertise with local insight, and we see this as the beginning of a very exciting next chapter for BVN in the UK.

Matthew Blair, BVN Principal

Project team