In 2000 Hoskins Architects won an invited competition to design the second children’s hospice for the Children’s Hospice Association Scotland, providing residential care and accommodation for up to nine children and their families.

The new building is positioned to maximise the views over the south-facing terraced gardens and yet discretely nestles into the contours of the landscape, minimising its visual impact. A hierarchy of spaces is organised into wings and two courtyards. One courtyard forms a welcoming entrance space and the other a glazed-over space that incorporates specialized play and therapy areas. The two children’s bedroom wings are oriented south to maximise daylight and views, with each culminating in fully glazed spaces housing the library and hydrotherapy pool. The “ribbon roof”, which encloses and defines the foyer and day spaces, is a response to the plan geometry and the desire to maximise daylight, and also to create a unique identity for the building.