RIBA has announced the shortlist for The Fleming Centre competition at St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington on behalf of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.

The Centre will be at the heart of the global Fleming Initiative, an innovative and collaborative approach led by the Trust and Imperial College London, with HRH Prince of Wales as its Patron, to tackle anti-microbial resistance (AMR). The Fleming Centre will be part of a global network of centres in strategic locations around the world, aiming to catalyse worldwide action.

Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham, Executive Chair of the Fleming Initiative, last week announced it had raised an initial £100m, supported by three new partners, LifeArc, Cepheid and Optum, alongside founding partner, GSK, and other philanthropists.

The Centre itself is due to open at St Mary’s Hospital in 2028, helping to mark the centenary of the discovery of penicillin at the hospital by Sir Alexander Fleming. It will be the first new building to open on the St Mary’s site as part of a planned full redevelopment of the site.

The evaluation panel selected the following practices to proceed to the next phase of the competition:

• AHMM
• Allies and Morrison
• Grimshaw
• Stanton Williams
• Wilkinson Eyre with White Arkitekter

The shortlisted teams will now enter the next phase of the process, with a final decision is expected to be announced in January 2025.

Professor Tim Orchard, chief executive of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, said: “We are excited by the prospect of plans for the Fleming Centre that incorporate creative ways to honour the legacy of Sir Alexander Fleming. We will be engaging with staff, patients and local communities to ensure that the Fleming Centre brings real impact, locally and globally, as a visionary space for collaboration, groundbreaking science and engagement to drive change.”

Lord Ara Darzi, Executive Chair of the Fleming Initiative, said: "Science alone will not solve the global threat of antimicrobial resistance, we have to change human behaviour. The Fleming Centre is an embodiment of our commitment to making public engagement and behavioural science the cornerstones of the innovative solutions we need. I look forward to reviewing plans for the Fleming Centre that will make this vision a reality."