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Lark Ward

  • Lark Ward is at the Woodlands Unit in Ipswich Hospital. It is a Psychiatric Intensive Care Ward (PICU). Our Lark Ward team cares for men over the age of 18 covering the area of Suffolk and Norfolk, Rollesby PICU Ward in Norwich cares for women across Norfolk and Suffolk. Lark provides care and treatment for men in the most critical time of mental health recovery. The team offers a more intensive service than other inpatient wards. This is due to our environment, levels of staffing and number of people cared for on the ward. Lark Ward work to ensure lengths of stay are as short as possible.

  • Service Contact: Clinical Team Leader Blessy Joy and Matron Christopher Larkin
  • Address:
    Lark Ward,  Woodlands Unit,  Ipswich Hospital, Ipswich, IP4 5PD
  • Reception phone number: 01473 891720
  • Service hours: This ward is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

What this service offers

Our Lark Ward team works with inpatients and their carers, family or friends. This is key to understanding the best way to provide appropriate care.

Lark ward provides care for those with the following conditions:

  • Acute anxiety
  • Bipolar disorder
  • Depression
  • Personality disorder
  • Schizophrenia

Patients on Lark Ward can receive the following treatments:

  • Art therapy
  • Brief talking therapies
  • Medication, including access to our pharmacists and pharmacy technicians
  • Occupational therapy
  • Physical health screening and assessment
  • Psychology

Lark Ward provides personal care planning and assessment to service users. This is to support them in their journey of recovery. It includes personalised discharge planning to acute services when appropriate.  ​ 

Lark Ward Leaflet 2025 [pdf] 117KB

 

Access this service

Access to Lark Ward is by referral only. The ward receives referrals for admission from a range of avenues. This includes community services, places of safety such as the 136 suite and other inpatient wards.

Referrals follow Section 12 Drs and an Approved Mental Health Practitioner making an assessment. The assessment determines the need for treatment under the Mental Health Act. It would also determine the need for a higher intensity of input than on our acute wards.

PICU practitioners screen referrals and decisions are made in line with the PICU criteria. 

How this service support carers including friends and family

Our team on Lark ward will contact you once a week or however often you like to offer you support and updates where possible on care. This will depend on the information that the patients are happy for us to share with you. Our team will also offer signposting to carers assessments which are conducted by your local county council.

We also send information to carers and assess their needs as part of the inpatient care plan.

Useful links:

Support groups Suffolk: Suffolk Family Carers | Support for unpaid family carers

Carers assessment Suffolk: Carers assessments - Suffolk County Council

Support groups and carer assessment Norfolk: Home - : Carers Matter Norfolk

Urgent help

If you are a service user and are in crisis and need support urgently you can contact your service on the number which will have been provided.  

Call 111 and select the mental health option to speak to our 24 hour mental health crisis line.

If you are with someone who has attempted suicide, call 999 and stay with them until the ambulance arrives. 

If anyone is at serious risk of harm, call 999 and ask for the police. 

For non-life threatening medical situations, call NHS111 on 111.  

For more information, see Help in a Crisis. 

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