Maggie’s Centre

The Project

Jamie Fobert Architects were approached by The Maggie Keswick Jencks Cancer Caring Centres Trust to deliver a new cancer care centre for Coventry and the surrounding area.

Located at the University Hospital of Coventry and Warwickshire, the new Maggie's Centre will provide support and specialist care for people living with cancer, and their families. Our project focuses on well-being and sustainability, including the use of natural light and natural materials.

Covering 4800sqm, the site is a man-made mound with its higher point 3 meters above street level. To the north is the hospital and to the south there are views of the adjacent Jubilee Nature Reserve. The new building will be partially embedded into the mound, to facilitate access. A set of slow stairs and ramps embedded in a wild garden subtly remove the visitor from the atmosphere of the street and the hospital.

The interior spaces are warm and welcoming, full of light and open space, with large windows framing views out into the garden and across to the Nature Reserve.

A lattice structure to the ceilings complements the geometry of the building and makes reference to Coventry’s history of weaving.

Sustainability

From the outset, sustainability shaped the project’s direction informing material choices, construction methods, and environmental performance.

A vapour-open form of construction has been developed which prioritises human health, comfort, and accessibility, using low embodied carbon materials sourced locally. A rubble wall, made from stone quarry by-products, lime, and hempcrete, is both a reflection of local identity and a response to Coventry’s climate. This approach embodies a place-based, climate-responsive strategy rooted in the principles of bioregionalism and ecomimicry, creating architecture that belongs to its place and respects the planet.