A transformative new ambulance maintenance and fleet support facility for the North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust (NWAS) has opened on the site of a former carpet showroom in Workington.

Construction began in January 2025 to refurbish and adapt the former AA Carpet Showroom on Chapel Road into a high-performance, future-ready ambulance workshop. The result is a modern facility that significantly enhances NWAS’s operational capability across Cumbria, ensuring that vital frontline services can continue to respond quickly and reliably.

Designed by GSSArchitecture, the redevelopment includes a dedicated ambulance maintenance workshop with MOT testing capabilities, along with specialist bays for electric vehicle servicing. The facility also provides secure ambulance parking, modern staff welfare areas, fully equipped office accommodation, and a flexible training room. External works were carried out to incorporate electric vehicle charging infrastructure, supporting both fleet and staff vehicles.

The project was delivered in close collaboration with the main contractor, Ascot, and multi-disciplinary engineers WSP, who provided mechanical, electrical, civil, and structural engineering services.

“The transformation of this former retail unit into a highly specialised workshop is a testament to the power of adaptive reuse,” said Alex Proctor, Partner at GSSArchitecture. “It delivers practical, future-ready infrastructure tailored to the operational needs of the North West Ambulance Service, while making efficient use of an existing building.”

North West Ambulance Service, Director of Finance, Carolyn Wood comments; “Covering the whole of the North West region we have a number of sites that we had simply out grown and this was the case for our Cumbria workshop team. As technology and vehicle designs change, we have had to adapt and enhance our skills to keep our emergency ambulances on the road. Our ambulance numbers increase year on year to meet demand and it is great for the workshop team to have a new facility where they can ensure that our fleet is running smoothly.”

Procured through the NHS Shared Business Services (SBS) Framework, this latest project adds to our growing portfolio of healthcare and emergency services work, underlining the practice’s commitment to creating spaces that directly support public wellbeing and operational excellence.