Sydney Children’s Hospital Randwick

The new Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick building has welcomed its first patients, marking a significant milestone for paediatric care in New South Wales. Designed by Billard Leece Partnership (BLP), the project includes Australia’s first Children’s Comprehensive Cancer Centre and brings clinical care and research together within one integrated facility.

Developed with Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network, Children’s Cancer Institute, John Holland and Health Infrastructure, the building reframes how healing environments can support clinical outcomes. Human-centred design, research and medical delivery operate in tandem rather than as competing priorities.

“Our goal has been to use our expertise and the latest research in paediatric design to build a precinct that supports patients, their families and the networks around them,” says Tara Veldman, Managing Director, BLP. “Children heal in spaces that are designed for them, where their clinical, emotional and social needs can be met.”

A key element of the project is the Minderoo Children’s Comprehensive Cancer Centre, where clinical spaces and translational research laboratories sit side by side. This ‘bench-to-bedside’ arrangement directly supports the Zero Childhood Cancer program, which has achieved a 70 per cent success rate for children with the highest-risk cancers.

BLP’s approach draws on familiar domestic references, using the ideas of the home and the backyard to counter the stress of extended hospital stays. Nature-filled communal rooms, outdoor terraces, pet-friendly zones and places for families to gather introduce moments of normality within the clinical setting. Parents are also able to work or rest nearby, reinforcing the hospital’s focus on supporting the whole family.

“Recovery is closely linked to reducing stress and anxiety,” says Veldman. “Providing a home-like environment creates a sense of normality and gives children and families places of retreat and trust.”

More than 2,000 stakeholders contributed to the design process, including clinicians, carers, First Nations representatives and young patients. Their input informed features such as single-occupancy rooms designed as bedrooms rather than wards, generous family spaces with 24/7 access, and interactive play and discovery areas distributed throughout the building. Biophilic strategies ensure natural light and greenery are visible from every ward and laboratory, while glazed research labs allow families to see the scientific work taking place, demystifying the process.

Located within the Randwick Health & Innovation Precinct, the hospital connects directly with Sydney’s light rail and links above ground to both the Prince of Wales Acute Services Building and UNSW’s Health Translation Hub. A permeable ground plane and a new public plaza extend the precinct’s network of outdoor spaces, supported by landscaping and small retail tenancies that offer places for visitors and staff to gather.

Interior design and wayfinding draw on colour, texture and envirographics inspired by Australian flora and fauna to support intuitive navigation and a sense of calm. Dedicated First Nations spaces, Dharawal-language wayfinding and a multilingual digital Welcome to Country reinforce the project’s cultural commitments. Public art, installations and soundscapes offer moments of distraction and play for patients.

Sustainability measures include modular laboratory systems, operational waste reduction strategies and a circular economy workshop for plastics recycling. Laboratories are positioned between clinical floors to allow the facility to expand its workforce while minimising the spatial footprint.

“The future of sustainable laboratories is about reducing energy use and designing for adaptability,” says Bettina Bartos, Principal and Science and Technology Lead at BLP.

The Sydney Children’s Hospital and Minderoo Children’s Comprehensive Cancer Centre illustrate the growing role of integrated research, technical excellence and human-centred design in contemporary healthcare. BLP has delivered two major paediatric hospital buildings concurrently – the new Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead Stage 2 Redevelopment – together forming the largest investment in paediatric health care in NSW.

Billard Leece Partnership
blp.com.au