The role of hybrid green spaces in secure psychiatric care
Wilhelm K., Lomax T., McCarthy L., Boyle JS., Menon S., Hart A., Coombes M., Cox T., Hall J., Freebody J., Fleming W., Danziger J., Singh I.
Psychiatric Intensive Care Units (PICUs) often prioritise safety over therapeutic design, limiting nature contact despite its mental health and wellbeing benefits. In response, we present a micro-case from the Warneford Hospital PICU (Oxford, UK), where staff co-designed a bio-diverse garden within safety protocols, addressing three questions: How can secure units integrate biodiverse green spaces? How do such spaces expand therapeutic potential? How do they reshape staff–patient relationships? We explore how hybrid green spaces can reconcile safety and care, offering a model for more integrated, ecologically grounded psychiatric environments.