Vital Energi has delivered a £1.7m energy upgrade at Bracknell Urgent Care Centre, supporting Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust’s decarbonisation goals while maintaining essential clinical services.
Delivered over a seven‑month period, the upgrade focused on improving energy efficiency, resilience and flexibility within the urgent care setting, where temperature control is critical to patient comfort. Bracknell Urgent Care Centre supports vulnerable patients, including those receiving kidney dialysis treatment and cancer respite care, with different clinical needs requiring both heating and cooling at the same time.
To meet these requirements, Vital Energi installed two air source heat pumps capable of producing chilled and heated water simultaneously, ensuring temperatures can be tailored to individual areas of the building. The system is supported by four 7,000‑litre buffer vessels, providing thermal storage and enhancing system stability, alongside a newly installed energy compound to house key plant and infrastructure.
The project delivers long‑term carbon and financial savings for the Trust, while providing a future‑proofed, low‑carbon solution aligned with NHS sustainability targets.
The works were carried out within a fully operational urgent care environment, requiring careful planning, close collaboration and continuous liaison with key hospital stakeholders. Maintaining energy resilience throughout the programme was essential to ensure uninterrupted care for patients.
The successful completion of the Bracknell Urgent Care Centre project further demonstrates Vital Energi’s experience in delivering complex decarbonisation schemes across live healthcare estates, helping NHS organisations reduce carbon emissions while improving infrastructure resilience and performance.
The project received £1.7m funding through Phase 4 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS).
