Bangour Village Hospital

Last updated

Bangour Village Hospital
NHS Lothian
Old hospital buildings at Bangour (geograph 3832230).jpg
Old buildings at Bangour Village Hospital
West Lothian UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Shown in West Lothian
Geography
Location Dechmont, West Lothian, Scotland, United Kingdom
Coordinates 55°55′25″N3°33′00″W / 55.92361°N 3.55000°W / 55.92361; -3.55000
Organisation
Care system Public NHS
Type Psychiatric
History
Opened1906
Closed2004
Links
Lists Hospitals in Scotland

Bangour Village Hospital was a psychiatric hospital located west of Dechmont in West Lothian, Scotland. During the First World War it formed part of the much larger Edinburgh War Hospital. [1]

Contents

History

The hospital church Church, Bangor Village Hospital.jpg
The hospital church

The hospital was modelled on the village system of patient care, the best example of which is the Alt-Scherbitz hospital at Schkeuditz in Germany which was developed in the 1870s. [2] [3] It was designed by Hippolyte Blanc and officially opened as the Edinburgh District Asylum in October 1906. [4] At the centre of the site was an Edwardian Baroque hall. [4] [5] The site also incorporated a power station, workshops, a bakery, stores, a kitchen and a laundry. [4]

The hospital was requisitioned by the War Office during the First World War but reverted to psychiatric work between the wars. [2] A Romanesque style church, designed by Harold Ogle Tarbolton, was built between 1924 and 1930. [6]

During the Second World War the hospital was occupied by the War Office again and the patients were evacuated to Hartwoodhill Hospital [7] : 33 

Temporary marquees and prefabricated huts were erected to cope with the demand for wartime bed space: the temporary facility became noted for its burns and plastic surgery unit which was established in 1940. [3] After the war the temporary facility was developed as Bangour General Hospital. [3]

After general medical services transferred to the newly-opened St John's Hospital in nearby Livingston, Bangour General Hospital closed in 1991. [8] The Village Hospital also started to wind down after the opening of St Johns with the last remaining ward closing in 2004. [4]

Railway branch line

When the hospital was built, road access was poor, and considerable volumes of coal and general stores were required for the running of the facility. A private railway line was built, branching from the former Edinburgh and Bathgate Railway line at Uphall, and terminating at Bangour railway station. It was authorised by the Edinburgh and District Lunacy Board Act of 30 July 1900, and it was opened to passengers on 19 June 1905. [9]

During the First World War the road network was improved, and the railway became unnecessary; it was closed on 1 August 1921, although passenger services probably ceased on 4 May 1921. [10] [11]

Present use

The closed hospital was used as a filming location for the 2005 film The Jacket , starring Keira Knightley and Adrien Brody. [12]

During September 2009, the hospital grounds were used as the site for "Exercise Green Gate", a counter-terrorist exercise run by the Scottish Government to test de-contamination procedures in the event of a nuclear, chemical or biological incident. This involved 250 volunteer "casualties" and 400 emergency staff. [13]

On 1 October 2015 Planning Permission for a residential and mixed use redevelopment of the former hospital site is being sought. The application notes some of the listed buildings at the site may be proposed for full demolition in a subsequent application. This may include villas 7,8,9 and 21, with other buildings potentially proposed for partial demolition. [14]

In early 2020, it was confirmed that five of the listed buildings on site were in very poor condition and were planned to be demolished, while the remaining ten buildings were due to be redeveloped for housing. [15]

In April 2024, RoundShield (an investment company) and the Ambassador Group (estate agents) announced that they had secured funding of £21 million for a large-scale residential development on the site. This would initially include 51 "energy-efficient" new homes and the first 23 refurbished flats within the existing listed buildings. The two companies also announced the sale of part of the site to Barratt Homes for further residential development. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Lothian</span> Council area of Scotland

West Lothian is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, and was one of its historic counties. The county was called Linlithgowshire until 1925. The historic county was bounded geographically by the Avon to the west and the Almond to the east. The modern council area occupies a larger area than the historic county. It was reshaped following local government reforms in 1975: some areas in the west were transferred to Falkirk; some areas in the east were transferred to Edinburgh; and some areas that had formerly been part of Midlothian were added to West Lothian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Fortune</span> Human settlement in Scotland

East Fortune is a village in East Lothian, Scotland, located 2 miles (3 km) north west of East Linton. The area is known for its airfield which was constructed in 1915 to help protect Britain from attack by German Zeppelin airships during the First World War. The RNAS airship station also included an airship hangar. In 1919 the British airship R34 made the first airship crossing of the Atlantic, flying from East Fortune to Mineola, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Livingston, West Lothian</span> New town and administrative centre in Scotland

Livingston is the largest town in West Lothian, Scotland. Designated in 1962, it is the fourth post-war new town to be built in Scotland. Taking its name from a village of the same name incorporated into the new town, it was originally developed in the then-counties of Midlothian and West Lothian along the banks of the River Almond. It is situated approximately fifteen miles (25 km) west of Edinburgh and thirty miles (50 km) east of Glasgow, and is close to the towns of Broxburn to the north-east and Bathgate to the north-west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sciennes</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Sciennes is a district of Edinburgh, Scotland, situated approximately 2 kilometres south of the city centre. It is a mainly residential district, although it is also well-known as the site of the former Royal Hospital for Sick Children. Most of its housing stock consists of terraces of four-storey Victorian tenements. The district is popular with students, thanks to its proximity to the University of Edinburgh. Its early history is linked to the presence in the area of the 16th-century Convent of St Catherine of Scienna, from which the district derives its name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Balerno</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Balerno is a village on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland situated 8 miles south-west of the city centre, next to Currie and then Juniper Green. Traditionally in the county of Midlothian it now administratively falls within the jurisdiction of the City of Edinburgh Council. The village lies at the confluence of the Water of Leith and the Bavelaw Burn. In the 18th and 19th century, the area was home to several mills using waterpower. In the 20th century, the mills closed and the village now forms a residential suburb of Edinburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western General Hospital</span> Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland

The Western General Hospital is a health facility at Craigleith, Edinburgh, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Lothian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Victoria Hospital, Edinburgh</span> Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland

The Royal Victoria Hospital was a health facility at Craigleith Road in the north-west of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was formerly the main Medicine for the Older Adult assessment and rehabilitation hospital for the north of Edinburgh. It closed in 2012, then briefly reopened to ease pressure on acute beds in the region. The facility finally closed in early 2017 and was not in use when a fire caused damage to buildings in May 2017. It was managed by NHS Lothian.

The Edinburgh–Bathgate line is a railway line in East Central Scotland. It is also known as the Bathgate branch and was originally operated by the Edinburgh and Bathgate Railway. Except for the short section at the original Bathgate terminus, the main line is still in use, with a frequent passenger train service operated by ScotRail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Edinburgh Hospital</span> Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland.

The Royal Edinburgh Hospital is a psychiatric hospital in Morningside Place, Edinburgh, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Lothian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Armadale, West Lothian</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Armadale is a town within the county of West Lothian in the Central Belt of Scotland. It lies to the west of Bathgate and to the east of Blackridge. Armadale, formerly known as Barbauchlaw, is an ex-mining town which was also known for its brick manufacturing. It is named after Armadale in Sutherland, this estate being owned by Sir William Honeyman who later acquired the land of Barbauchlaw. Primarily a residential community, the town has a number of different public places, a central Mains Street and a series of parks, green spaces and nature reserves, many of which lie atop former mines and industrial areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winchburgh</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Winchburgh is a village in the council area of West Lothian, Scotland. It is located approximately 10 miles (16 km) west of the city-centre of Edinburgh, 6 miles (9.7 km) east of Linlithgow and 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of Broxburn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh</span> Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland

The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (RIE), often known as the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary (ERI), was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest voluntary hospital in the United Kingdom, and later on, the Empire. The hospital moved to a new 900 bed site in 2003 in Little France. It is the site of clinical medicine teaching as well as a teaching hospital for the University of Edinburgh Medical School. In 1960, the first successful kidney transplant performed in the UK was at this hospital. In 1964, the world's first coronary care unit was established at the hospital. It is the only site for liver, pancreas and pancreatic islet cell transplantation and one of two sites for kidney transplantation in Scotland. In 2012, the Emergency Department had 113,000 patient attendances, the highest number in Scotland. It is managed by NHS Lothian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linlithgow</span> Town in Scotland

Linlithgow is a town in West Lothian, Scotland. It was historically West Lothian's county town, reflected in the county's historical name of Linlithgowshire. An ancient town, it lies in the Central Belt on a historic route between Edinburgh and Falkirk beside Linlithgow Loch. The town is situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Edinburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecclesmachan</span> Village in West Lothian

Ecclesmachan (NT058736) is an historic village in West Lothian. It lies just north of Uphall on the B8046 road and just south of Threemiletown. The village is notable for its medieval origin parish church. As at 2001, the population of the civil parish of Ecclesmachan was 529 and was 811 in 1991.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St John's Hospital, Livingston</span> Hospital in Scotland

St John's Hospital is the main general hospital in Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland. Located in the Howden area of the town, it serves Livingston and the wider West Lothian region. St John's is a teaching hospital for the University of Edinburgh Medical School. It is managed by NHS Lothian.

Bangour General Hospital was a hospital just west of the village of Dechmont, West Lothian, Scotland. It had its origins during the Second World War when hospital bed numbers in Scotland were greatly expanded to deal with the anticipated increase in civilian and military war casualties. The Emergency Hospital Service (Scotland) scheme resulted in seven new hospitals being built, while at Bangour Village Hospital in West Lothian an annexe of five ward blocks was built and this developed into Bangour General Hospital after the war. This hospital served the population of West Lothian as a general hospital and also included a maxillo-facial unit serving the Lothian region and a burns and plastic surgery unit serving much of east Scotland, the Borders and the Highland region. The hospital services were transferred to the newly built St John's Hospital at Livingston during 1989–90, and Bangour General Hospital closed in 1990 and was subsequently demolished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh</span> Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland

The Royal Hospital for Sick Children was a hospital in Sciennes, Edinburgh, Scotland, specialising in paediatric healthcare. Locally, it was commonly referred to simply as the "Sick Kids". The hospital provided emergency care for children from birth to their 13th birthday, including a specialist Accident and Emergency facility. Some in-patient specialties saw children up to their 16th birthday. The hospital was located on Sciennes Road in the Sciennes area of Edinburgh's South Side and was managed by NHS Lothian. It moved in 2021 to the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Little France.

The Emergency Hospital Service (EHS) of Scotland was an intensive, publicly funded programme of hospital building conducted by the Department of Health for Scotland during the 1940s. The scale and pace of public investment in hospital construction and staffing was unprecedented in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hartwood Hospital</span> Hospital in Scotland

Hartwood Hospital was a psychiatric hospital located in the village of Hartwood near the town of Shotts in Scotland.

The Princess Margaret Rose Orthopaedic Hospital was a hospital in Fairmilehead, Edinburgh, opened in 1932 and closed in 2000. After closure, with services transferred to the new Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, it was demolished and the site sold for housing.

References

  1. ↑ "Bangour Village Hospital Feature Page on Undiscovered Scotland". www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
  2. 1 2 Historic Environment Scotland. "Bangour Village Hospital, Former Administration Block and Wards 1 & 2 (Category B Listed Building) (LB6588)" . Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 "Scottish fact of the day: Bangour Village Hospital". The Scotsman. 2 December 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Bangour Village Hospital". Historic Hospitals. 4 September 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  5. ↑ Historic Environment Scotland. "Bangour Village Hospital, Former Recreation Hall (Category A Listed Building) (LB51903)" . Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  6. ↑ Historic Environment Scotland. "Bangour Village Hospital, Former Memorial Church (Category A Listed Building) (LB51902)" . Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  7. ↑ Gallacher, Mark. "From mental patient to service user: deinstitutionalisation and the emergence of the Mental Health Service User Movement in Scotland, 1971–2006" (PDF). theses.gla.ac.uk/. Glasgow University. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
  8. ↑ "LHB40 Bangour General Hospital". Lothian Health Services Archive. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  9. ↑ Butt, R. V. J. (October 1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN   978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC   60251199. OL   11956311M., p. 26
  10. ↑ John Thomas revised J S Paterson, A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: Volume 6, Scotland, the Lowlands and the Borders, David and Charles, Newton Abbot, 1984, ISBN   0 946537 12 7
  11. ↑ Gordon Stansfield, Lost Railways of the Lothians, Stenlake Publishing, Catrine, 2003, ISBN   1 84033 2700
  12. ↑ "The Jacket". Internet Movie Database. Archived from the original on 6 April 2008. Retrieved 1 April 2008.
  13. ↑ "Village hosts training exercise for treating radiation casualties". Edinburgh Evening News . 17 September 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  14. ↑ "Bangour Village Hospital: Villa 10". Buildings At Risk. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  15. ↑ "Bangour Hospital: Listed buildings set to be demolished to make way for development". Edinburgh Live. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  16. ↑ "RoundShield and Ambassador Group secure £21m for Bangour Village Estate development". Scottish Construction Now. 15 April 2024. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.