Ravenswood House NHS – Safe Access Evolution in Mental Health Care
Ravenswood House is a secure mental health hospital in Hampshire, part of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight NHS Foundation Trust. The facility provides specialist forensic care and rehabilitation for patients with complex mental health needs, making safety, security, and compliance top priorities.
Background
In early 2025, Ravenswood House commissioned a joint project to upgrade access control across five wards using a combination of Safe Access Evolution (SAE) and SimonsVoss System 3060 solutions, forming part of a wider rollout across the Trust.
Healthcare facilities, particularly in mental health environments, face growing operational and regulatory pressures. With increased staff turnover, tighter budgets, regular CQC audits and the introduction of new compliance standards such as the upcoming Labour Mental Health Bill 2025 and Martyn’s Law, Trusts are being challenged to do more with less - without compromising on safety.
Ravenswood House required a solution that could:
- Replace mechanical keys with secure, wireless access control
- Installation that would retrofit onto existing doors without compromising fire certification, and could work in conjunction with existing mechanical locksets in the bedrooms
- Enhance patient and staff safety while preserving dignity and autonomy
- Provide scalable, audit-ready security infrastructure
- Minimise disruption during installation and operation
The Solution
Working collaboratively, SimonsVoss and Anti-Ligature Shop delivered an integrated, future-proof access control solution designed specifically for the challenges of mental health environments.
- Safe Access Evolution (SAE) was implemented to provide patient-operated room access, giving individuals greater control and privacy while maintaining staff override and safety protocols. SAE was designed to be both ligature-resistant and robust for use in challenging environments.
- SimonsVoss System 3060 offered secure, wireless control of ward doors without the need for complex cabling - reducing both cost and disruption.
- The solution was designed with scalability in mind, enabling the Trust to begin with a small number of wards and expand system-wide as funding allows
This approach aligned with the Trust’s strategic goal of improving safety and operational efficiency while maintaining compliance with CQC requirements and upcoming legislation.
Outcome
The project successfully delivered improved safety, control, and compliance across all five wards - while minimising cost, disruption and installation complexity.
Key outcomes included:
- Enhanced Safety: Secure, wireless access with audit trails and lockdown functionality
- Improved Patient Experience: SAE enabled patients to independently access their rooms, increasing autonomy and dignity
- Operational Efficiency: Eliminating lost keys and manual rekeying reduced long-term maintenance costs
- Scalable ROI: A modular system design allows the Trust to expand incrementally across other facilities
The Ravenswood House project marks a major milestone in advancing access control within mental health care environments. By combining Safe Access Evolution and SimonsVoss System 3060, the multi-team collaboration has demonstrated how innovative, wireless solutions can deliver measurable safety, efficiency, and compliance benefits - even in a time of tightening budgets and increasing regulation.
The solution delivers long-term value across five key areas:
- Return on Investment: Substantial cost savings are achieved by reducing key losses, downtime, and ongoing maintenance compared to mechanical and hard-wired systems.
- Scalability: NHS Trusts can begin with one ward or a short proof-of-concept trial, minimising upfront investment and enabling organic, system-wide growth.
- Compliance: The system supports evolving regulatory requirements, ensuring full auditability, safety, and cybersecurity standards are met.
- Integration Ready: SAE and SimonsVoss solutions can integrate with existing security and building management systems, enabling a unified, future-proof approach to access control.
- Safety: SAE has been designed with safety in mind and is both robust and ligature resistant, and has been independently tested by the British Research Establishment (BRE) under the ‘Informed Choices’ programme
Building on this success, we continue to work with partners helping NHS Trusts nationwide explore how intelligent access control technology can improve safety, drive compliance, and deliver real cost efficiencies across healthcare estates.