SIX architects have been shortlisted to design a new £10m cancer care centre in Hampshire.

Firms submitted design concepts for the state-of-the-art facility north of Winchester, which will provide radiotherapy, chemotherapy and palliative care, after Hampshire Hospitals’ NHS Foundation Trust (HHFT), which runs Winchester, Basingstoke and Andover hospitals, launched a design competition.

The six included: “a walk in the woods” through glass-walled corridors; a large sculpture garden and a “carpet of gold” roof canopy.

Another scheme involved a series of houses in a village setting to “break down the scale of the cancer treatment process”.

The six architect-led teams shortlisted are: HLM; BDP; John Cooper; Steffian Bradley; Hopkins; and Stantec Ashen and Allen.

The winner will be announced in the early part of this year when work will begin on a feasibility study and more detailed plans — although a suitable site has still to be found.

The trust was looking in an area of land encircled by the M3, A34 and A303.

A campaign being run by The Ark Cancer Centre Charity is aiming to raise £5m to enhance the environment of the facility.