Healthcare Green Space Framework Report for HSE Climate & Sustainability Programme

The HSE’s Climate Action Strategy 2023-2050 sets out the HSE’s commitment to achieve net-zero emissions no later than 2050, delivering healthcare that is environmentally and socially sustainable. To support the delivery of the strategy, seven framework documents were published to reflect each of the areas of focus. 

The  Green Spaces document provides a strategic foundation for development of a HSE Green Space Framework and supporting implementation plan to optimise the use of green space for the promotion of the health and well-being of patients, staff and the local communities and to maintain and improve biodiversity across the 2,500 sites owned and managed by the HSE.

In collaboration with HSE staff and stakeholders, 15 pilot sites of diverse typology were identified across the country for initial appraisal. Site appraisals assessed and categorised typical site constraints and opportunities to inform a best practice / how to guide to aid in the continual improvement of green infrastructure across all HSE sites.  Each site was assessed for potential to realise key design principles contributing towards Wellbeing, Rehabilitation,  Ecological gain, Universal Design, and Therapeutic landscape. 

We developed evaluation metrics under the headings of ‘Welcoming’ to assess the experience of the site upon arrival ,  ‘Scale’ to categorise the size, shape and type of space available to carry out actions, ‘Movement’ to assess the ease and experience of movement through the site from key functional route, passive spaces and links to amenity, ‘Complexity’ to categorise the range of site uses from an operational and future development stand point, ‘Ecology’ to assess the existing ecological value on the site and it’s status in terms of local biodiversity and ‘Social’ to assess the offering of the spaces for users in terms of amenity. 

For each of the fifteen pilot sites, we identified the potential for interventions in five categories ranging from  low to high impact based on Enhancement of Local Biodiversity,  Benefits to all users,  Cost and complexity.   The report also outlined an implementation and delivery strategy for development of further projects across the HSE Estate Portfolio.