Gilling Dod Architects first project in the High Secure Mental health field achieved completion in Spring 2010. The new £32Million National High Secure Learning Disabilities development at Rampton Hospital, Retford marks a major capital investment by the Trust on the historical Mental Health site at Retford. The design splits the 56 bed accommodation over four house units and a Therapeutic Care building containing patient therapy spaces to ground floor with staff only office space over. These five individual buildings are positioned around a central ‘village’ space that acts as a catalyst for social interaction of the learning disability patients as well as a landmark quality external space. One of the aspirations of the brief was to define the new ‘campus’ without fences and the building footprints reflect this. Arranged radically around the village heart, the House Units also allow uninterrupted visual links across this open space to maintain observation of patients travelling from the Houses to the Therapeutic Care building. The village also provides stimulus and a sense of place to the House Units. To protect this ‘quality’ village area all the service traffic is distributed to the rear leg of the houses via a designated service ring road. Predominantly single storey, the buildings also look to satisfy issues of clear sight lines, safe and secure design as well as the appropriate healing environment. The results promise to be both modern and uplifting, and mirror the Trust's high aspirations for this Landmark service.