Digital technology is rapidly reshaping mental health environments from electronic locking and ligature-detection systems to data-driven monitoring and patient-facing tools. These advances present enormous potential to improve patient experience, dignity and safety. But if poorly implemented, they can also introduce new risks: alarm fatigue, privacy breaches, power imbalances, and a shift away from therapeutic human interaction. In this session, Philip Ross will share Safehinge Primera's unique             perspective from 15 years of innovation across high-acuity and acute mental health settings. Drawing on lessons from two generations of electronic locking, real-world feedback from lived-experience groups, and case studies from NHS services and high secure environments, the presentation explores where technology genuinely helps and where it unintentionally harms.

Across time and culture, from the earliest teachings of Hippocrates, the role of ‘environment’ as a contextual factor of healing has been both foundational and explicit. Despite this enlightened heritage, ‘environment’, and its design, frequently exists below the level of conscious awareness among key decision makers, with perception of environment often limited to functional ‘places’ of intervention.

Growing attention to ‘environment’ and its design presents an opportunity for fostering a deeper understanding of ‘environment’ as being integral to the quality of the service experience for both recipient and provider [staff], and a key enabler of service user satisfaction and treatment outcomes.

This shift reflects the emerging recognition of the synergy between physical, psychological, and social factors which contribute to co-creating health environments as supportive places of healing, in which every contact counts. The shift is supported by the growing body of research evidence, demonstrating the contribution of environmental factors in enhancing service user satisfaction, the work experience of staff, and improved treatment outcomes.

This paper will present a broadened view, [the perceptual shift], of ‘environment’ within a health and social care context and broaden the perspectives through which it's effectiveness is considered. While drawing upon empirical evidence, emphasis will be placed on practical application of theory to practice.

The "Virtual Reality for Exposure Therapy" (VRET) initiative at St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS) represents a nursing innovation designed to enhance anxiety treatment. Originating from a ward-floor idea by Staff Nurse Aine Whyte—winner of the 2022 St Patricks Nursing Innovative Project Award—the concept was developed by a dedicated Nursing Quality Initiative working group in 2024.
The project introduces VRET into the anxiety disorders programme at St Patrick’s University Hospital as a cutting-edge, supplementary intervention. By utilising immersive software (XR Health), the project provides tailored, controlled, and scalable exposure environments for service users facing complex phobias and anxiety triggers. This initiative targets both inpatients and outpatients diagnosed with Agoraphobia, with or without Panic.
To evaluate efficacy, the project establishes a structured pilot programme involving 10 participating service users. A comparative analysis was conducted post-assessment on clinical outcomes against a 2022 baseline control group of 10 service users who underwent traditional exposure therapy. The outcomes proved that virtual reality was an effective treatment method and improved service user outcomes.

Discussing the successful delivery of a new perinatal mother and baby inpatient unit, highlighting how co production, experts by experience and person centred design were central to achieving a safe, appropriate and effective therapeutic environment. How design of Perinatal spaces necessitates a balanced approach to risk and the importance of placemaking. Key focus on the benefits of adapting/repurposing an underutilised asset within an active health campus and reflecting on the delivery challenges of operational constraints on a busy clinical site. Approximately 1 in 4 women will have a mental health problem during pregnancy and/or in the first year after birth and up to 4 in 1000 of these women will require an admission to a Mother and Baby Unit (MBU). MBUs are specialist inpatient units for women with severe mental health problems in the perinatal period where they can be admitted with their baby. Mental illness at this crucial time can affect a mother’s relationship with her baby. It can undermine a woman’s confidence and belief in her ability to be a good mother. MBUs are designed to keep mothers and their babies together. Specialist staff nurture and support the mother infant relationship on the ward at the same time as the mother has treatment for her mental illness. Women who require an MBU admission often have to go far away from their home and support network due to the limited number of units in the UK. Seren Lodge will give the women and families of Cheshire, Merseyside and North Wales access to their own specialist provision.

This presentation explores how sensory-informed design was embedded throughout the development of an inpatient mental health unit in rural England, which was awarded Design in Mental Health Project of the Year 2026. Using a real-world case study, it demonstrates how considerations such as colour, light, layout, acoustics, materials and access to nature can be used to create environments that feel calm, safe and therapeutic.

The session will share practical examples, lessons learned and key outcomes from the project, showing how sensory-informed design can be successfully delivered within the realities of healthcare design and construction. Delegates will gain practical, transferable insights that can be applied to mental health, autism, learning disability and wider healthcare settings.

Lighting plays a critical role in mental healthcare environments, influencing both wellbeing and rehabilitation outcomes. In this presentation, Lee will explore how thoughtfully designed lighting can support circadian rhythms. By linking the latest scientific research with practical design strategies, the session will provide attendees with an in-depth understanding of how light affects human biology and how we can combine this technology with compliant safety principles. Dynamic lighting systems can mimic natural light patterns, with blue-enriched light in the daytime to support wakefulness and blue-depleted light in the evening to encourage restful sleep. These non-visual effects of light, often overlooked in traditional design, can significantly enhance mood and overall wellbeing. Beyond the biological impact, lighting design in mental healthcare must balance aesthetics and safety. Environments should feel calming whilst combining ligature-resistant design principles and impact protection to reduce the risk of harm. Real-world clinical examples demonstrate that well-designed lighting can improve sleep quality, daily cognition, and even positively influence self-perception and motivation. This presentation will also address practical considerations for designers and healthcare providers. Challenges in mental healthcare environments, such as aligning safety with therapeutic goals, will be discussed. Attendees will leave with a comprehensive understanding of how lighting can be used to support mental health and rehabilitation, informed by science and real-world case studies. By aligning lighting with circadian rhythms, facilities can create safer environments.

The design of mental health environments requires careful consideration of safety, wellbeing, operational performance and regulatory compliance. Drawing on a comprehensive whitepaper combining industry surveys, in-depth interviews and over 20 years of specialist experience, this presentation explores the critical role that windows play in supporting both service user safety and therapeutic outcomes.

The research identified four key themes: safety, balancing competing requirements, testing and future developments. While safety remains the primary consideration for clinicians, estates teams and specifiers, the findings also highlight the importance of natural light, ventilation, privacy, dignity and service user control of the environment in creating therapeutic settings that promote recovery.

This presentation examines the challenges of selecting and specifying windows that meet stringent anti-ligature, anti-contraband and security requirements while delivering positive user experiences. It also explores emerging concerns around product testing, the limitations of current standards, and the industry's move towards more robust, standardised and evidence-based assessment methods.

Attendees will gain practical insights into balancing clinical, design, estates and operational priorities, enabling better-informed specification decisions that support safer, more therapeutic and future-ready mental health environments.

This project examines the local implementation of the HSE Mental Health Services: Guideline on the Implementation and Use of the National Ligature Risk Reduction Audit Tool for Approved Centres (2024) within the Department of Psychiatry, Unit 5B, University Hospital Limerick. The initiative was led through a strengthened Ligature Reduction Strategy Group, bringing together the complementary expertise of Maintenance, Health & Safety, Quality, Risk & Patient Safety, the Registered Proprietor, and the ADON/CMN3 of the service. This multidisciplinary structure ensured that environmental, clinical, organisational, and regulatory perspectives were integrated into a unified, evidence driven approach to ligature risk mitigation.
To enhance the robustness of the local assessment, a bespoke audit was commissioned from Tony Crumpton, formerly Head of Safety and Security for a large NHS Mental Health Trust and now Sales Director with the Anti Ligature Shop. His external review provided an independent, specialist evaluation of ligature risk vulnerabilities and validated the centre’s interpretation of the national audit tool.
The implementation process demonstrated the value of collective capability, where diverse professional viewpoints contributed to a balanced, proportionate, and evidence based risk reduction strategy. The project highlights how structured collaboration, supported by national guidance and enriched by specialist external input, can enhance patient safety outcomes.

Healthcare environments influence far more than clinical outcomes. Long before a person meets a healthcare professional, their nervous system has already begun responding to the environment around them. Lighting, noise, wayfinding, waiting areas, privacy and predictability can either support regulation or contribute to stress, overwhelm and disengagement. Drawing on my work as a psychologist, psychotherapist, neurodiversity consultant and founder of the social enterprise TSK Academy, alongside my lived experience as a neurodivergent person and parent of neurodivergent children, this session introduces Regulation by Design—a human-centred approach that explores how healthcare environments can actively promote psychological safety, emotional regulation and equitable access to care. Through real-world examples from healthcare, social care and family life, I will explore how seemingly small environmental decisions can have a profound impact on a person's ability to engage, communicate and feel safe. Rather than viewing the environment as simply the backdrop to care, this presentation encourages delegates to consider it as an active part of the care experience. Attendees will leave with practical, evidence-informed ideas that can be applied across healthcare settings, regardless of budget or scale, while gaining a deeper understanding of how thoughtful design can reduce unnecessary barriers and improve experiences for neurodivergent people and, ultimately, for everyone.

Healthcare staff are among the most exposed workforce groups to high-demand, sensory-intensive environments. Long working hours, open-plan workplaces, unpredictable noise, harsh lighting, and limited restorative spaces compound occupational stress. For neurodivergent staff, these conditions can be profoundly disabling. Everyday sensory inputs: sound, light, colour, and pattern can be overwhelming, leading to discomfort, anxiety, and distress. Yet the design needs of neurodivergent healthcare workers, estimated at 15-20% of staff, remain largely absent from evidence-based design frameworks, workforce wellbeing strategies, and capital project briefs. This presentation addresses the gap between neuroinclusive design intent and the lived reality of neurodivergent staff in Irish healthcare settings. It explores neurodiversity and work from the perspective of a neurodivergent healthcare professional, challenging the notion that neurodiversity is itself a disability, rather than a consequence of insufficient societal awareness and adaptation. Practical design interventions in the clinical environment are proposed to support neurodivergent professionals in flourishing, rather than struggling, at work. Drawing on emerging best practice in inclusive design and the salutogenic model, which frames health as a dynamic, positive state shaped by environmental, social, and personal resources, the presentation examines how the built environment can support or undermine staff wellbeing, cognitive performance, and retention. Key design considerations include acoustic comfort, lighting quality, sensory zoning, wayfinding, access to quiet and decompression spaces, and nature-informed design. The presentation highlights evidence-informed strategies that benefit all staff through a universal design lens, recognising that what supports neurodivergent individuals ultimately works better for everyone.