Nicola Sturgeon, MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Health & Wellbeing, has officially opened the £6.7m Pollok Civic Realm.

Designed by Archial Architects the building has been shortlisted for two prestigious awards: a RIBA Award, presented to the best new buildings in the United Kingdom and a Best Regeneration Project at the Scottish Design Awards 2009.

Built between the newly expanded Pollok Health Centre and the Pollok Leisure Centre, Pollok Civic Realm is a unique facility providing one stop access to a range of complementary public services delivered by partners in the public and voluntary sectors. Forming part of the overall Pollok Town Centre regeneration, it houses a café, library, museum, child-care facilities and other specialist social and healthcare related services.

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Russell Baxter of Archial Architects said: "The idea behind this facility was to create a colonnade providing a route interlinking the Pollok community with the new transport interchange and Silverburn shopping centre so that people are drawn through the building and, by virtue of this route, encouraged to make use of their civil amenities.

"The philosophy underlying the building design was to create a civic hub that housed all the various essential aspects of communal life under one roof. With that in mind, the building seeks to create an all-inclusive space with all its constituents spiralling off from a central reception desk."

According to Baxter the design sought to create the type of building that members of the public would be familiar with and feel comfortable within to encourage them to spend time frequenting the various aspects of the hub, and already there are indications that this objective has been achieved successfully.

From a single entrance the public access the refurbished leisure centre, new Pollok Library and Pollok Kist, GSWRA, South West Stress Centre, Citizens Advice Bureau, café and the refurbished and expanded Health Centre. As such, the Civic Realm also provides opportunities for effective and innovative joint working through co-location of services. Given the multiple stakeholders involved in the Pollok Civic Realm, the design process involved a comprehensive consultation process.

(GK/JM)