Final designs for £6.8m MND treatment centre named after Leeds Rhinos' Rob Burrow unveiled in huge milestone

The huge £6.8m project to build the state-of-the-art facility at Seacroft Hospital reached a significant milestone this week, as plans were submitted to Leeds City Council.

Pictures show the impressive building and its various spaces in detail, with documents explaining the uses of each area.

In 2019, rugby league legend and Leeds icon Rob Burrow was diagnosed with MND, a debilitating and life-limiting disease that affects the brain and nerves.

Since then, he has raised huge sums of money for organisations that help people with the condition. One of those is the Leeds Hospitals Charity, which is behind the plans for the new MND centre.

It has so far raised £5.4m towards the total cost – as £1.4m is needed, with an appeal still accepting donations.

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The new centre is arranged in three joint forms – an East and West Wing, which house the primary clinical spaces, connected via a central atrium.

This central space has been designed as a community focused area with reading and quiet spaces, as well as activity and dining areas. It will be a place for family members to use and will enable staff to observe patients in a more informal setting.

The first floor is designated as a staff area with a dedicated wellbeing space to provide staff working in the building with space away from the clinical areas – which architects considered important when providing care to patients with such a challenging condition.

Externally, the building has presence, with red brick tiles and gabled roofs. Internally, natural materials will blend throughout the spaces, further supporting the wellbeing of patients and staff using the building.

The plans explain that the new centre will make the most of the existing landscape features including mature trees, and will provide landscaped gardens with access routes through zones with a mixture of planting for patients to engage with.

It will also provide spaces for other therapy activities to take place as well as a memorial wall for private moments.

Architects Corstorphine & Wright were tasked with creating a building that meets the vision of staff, patients, people living with MND, as well as Rob and his family.

CEO of Leeds Hospitals Charity Esther Wakeman said: “This is an important milestone in our journey to build the Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease here in Leeds.

“I have met with many patients and their families, including Rob, who have helped us share the importance of this new centre. Thank you to everyone who has fundraised, we’re almost at the finish line, with £1.5million left to reach our fundraising target.

“I hope these designs and plans show our supporters how their donation will be spent to make a real difference.”

Once planning permission has been submitted, the plans will be reviewed with the aim of starting work as soon as possible.