Cane Hill Hospital | |
---|---|
South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust | |
Geography | |
Location | Coulsdon, Croydon, England, United Kingdom |
Coordinates | 51°18′46″N0°08′57″W / 51.31278°N 0.14906°W |
Organisation | |
Care system | NHS England |
Type | Psychiatric hospital |
Services | |
Beds |
|
History | |
Opened | 1882 |
Closed | 2008 |
Demolished | 2008–2010 |
Links | |
Lists | Hospitals in England |
Cane Hill Hospital was a psychiatric hospital in Coulsdon in the London Borough of Croydon. The hospital motto was "Aversos compono animos" (I bring relief to troubled minds). [1] The hospital was built in the 1880s, but from the 1960s its use was starting to decline and it eventually closed completely in the 2000s. The former site is owned by GLA Land and Property.
The hospital has its origins as the third Surrey County Pauper Lunatic Asylum, designed by Charles Henry Howell, [2] which was built in two stages between 1882 and 1888. [3] The design which involved a 'radiating pavilion' layout was original, [3] with an estimated building cost of £150,000. [1] Upon opening Cane Hill Asylum had capacity for 1,124 patients (644 women and 480 men) making it the largest of its kind in the UK. [1]
The London County Council took over administration of the hospital in 1889 and expanded the hospital to a capacity of 2,000 beds the same year. [4] [1] The new administration renamed the hospital to London County Council Asylum with provision for Croydon, dedicating one eighth of the beds to Croydon patients until the opening of Croydon Mental Hospital in 1903. [1] [5]
Following the Mental Treatment Act 1930 the hospital was renamed to Cane Hill Mental Hospital. [3] [1] This act was later repealed by the Mental Health Act 1959 causing the hospital to rename a final time to Cane Hill Hospital. [1]
The hospital took in a large number of discharged mentally ill servicemen during the First World War, the earliest patient recorded being admitted in 1915 [2] but later discharged to another hospital in 1923. Records for nearly 40 such service patients, some of whom died and were interred in the hospital cemetery, have been found. [6]
The outbreak of World War II saw the hospital join the Emergency Hospital Service, reserving six wards for military casualties and bringing the total number of patients to 2,500. [1]
In June 1948 a patient who had climbed up onto the sloped roof of his ward in the dark was rescued from a 40 ft 0 in (12.19 m) drop by two male nurses; Harold Childs, aged 42, and Henry Garnett, aged 36. The pair were awarded the Daily Herald Order of Industrial Heroism for their "calculated act of bravery". The medals were presented at County Hall, Westminster by Mary Ormerod, chairman of the LCC Mental Hospitals Committee. [7] [8] [9]
In 1956 Members of Parliament, Norman Nodds and Donald Johnston successfully campaigned for the discharge of patient, Harriet Thornton, aged 53. A Pathé News newsreel documented her discharge on 25 October 1956, after 3+1⁄2 years as a patient. [10] In the footage she is shown leaving the hospital in celebration with the two MPs. [11] Nodds would later reference the hospital in Commons debates against what he described as "slapdash mental laws" in light of the case. [12] [10]
By the late 1980s the number of patients had greatly declined, largely due to the recommendations of the Mental Health Act 1983 with its emphasis on care in the community. [3] By 1988 the hospital bed capacity had reduced to 787. [1] Following a gradual winding down of hospital services and operations, the entire hospital with the exception of a small secure unit had closed in March 1991. [3] The secure unit moved into what had been the Coulsdon Cottage Hospital: in 2006 it held 23 patients and was run by the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM). The unit closed in February 2008, with the patients and staff being transferred to the River House, a new Medium Secure Unit at Bethlem Royal Hospital. [13] [3]
Demolition of Cane Hill started in March 2008 and was completed by the end of 2010. Only the chapel, administration building and water tower remained. [14]
Cane Hill suffered numerous arson attacks between 2000 and 2002 resulting in the destruction of the Main Hall, Blocks C and V and heavy damage to other derelict buildings. [15] [16] Often the fires required multiple fire brigades to extinquish. Forty-three fire engines from 11 fire brigades responded to an attack in September 2001, and 100 fire fighters responded to a later attack in April 2002. [17] [18] [19] The repeated incidents of arson prompted an increase in security on the site and construction of a 9 ft 0 in (2.74 m) barbed wire fence. [15] [20]
On 13 November 2010 a fire took hold in the administration block and went on to destroy all but the front facade of the building. The fire also destroyed the iconic clock tower. At about midnight, firefighters saw the clocktower crash to the ground in the blaze. The fire had been started in the basement of the building, draughting its way up through the ground and first floors before finally destroying the roof. [21]
The hospital had a cemetery on Portnalls Road for inmates which was last used for burials in September 1950 and was deconsecrated and cleared at the hospital site's redevelopment in 1981 when remains of nearly 6,000 people were exhumed and cremated at Croydon Cemetery in Mitcham Road. [22] Among the remains were those of British First World War servicemen, who were known to have had separate areas in the cemetery where they had been originally buried with military honours. [22] Research from plans indicated there were two designated main 'Service Plots', numbered 411 and 420, where six were buried in each grave. [6] Eighteen of these servicemen, who had qualified for commemoration by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), [23] are commemorated on a memorial the CWGC erected in Croydon Cemetery, where their ashes had been scattered at 'Location 1000' in the grounds, in 2015. [24] [22]
Cane Hill Hospital accommodated several notable patients in its history:
A drawing of the Cane Hill Hospital administration block is featured on the front cover of the US release of David Bowie's 1970 album The Man Who Sold the World . [34] Metal band Cane Hill based their name on the Cane Hill Hospital. [35]
The Daily Herald Order of Industrial Heroism was presented to two male nurses for a "calculated act of bravery" in saving the life of a patient. Each also received a cheque. The men, Harold Childs, aged 42, and Henry Garnett, aged 36, of the Cane Hill Mental Hospital, Coulsdon, Surrey, clambered on to a sloping roof in the dark after an escaped patient and rescued him from a 40-feet drop. The medals were presented at County Hall, Westminster, by Mrs Ormerod, chairman of LCC Mental Hospitals Committee.
A psychiatric hospital, also known as a mental health hospital, or a behavioral health hospital, is a specialized medical facility that focuses on the treatment of severe mental disorders. These institutions cater to patients with conditions such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, and eating disorders, among others.
Coulsdon is a town in south London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon. Coulsdon was an ancient parish in the county of Surrey that included the settlements of Purley and Kenley. It was merged with Sanderstead in 1915 to form the Coulsdon and Purley Urban District and has formed part of Greater London since 1965.
Coulsdon South railway station serves Coulsdon in the London Borough of Croydon, and is in Travelcard Zone 6, on the Brighton Main Line. It is 17 miles 3 chains (27.42 km) measured from London Charing Cross. The station is served by Southern and by Thameslink. It is the most southerly mainline station in London.
Coulsdon North is a closed railway station that served Coulsdon, Croydon, England, on the Brighton Main Line.
Exminster is a village west of the Exeter ship canal and River Exe in Devon, England, 6 km (3.7 mi) south of Exeter, with a population of 4,379 at the 2021 census.
Friern Hospital was a psychiatric hospital in the parish of Friern Barnet close to a crossroads which had a hamlet known as Colney Hatch. In 1965, it became part of the London Borough of Barnet and in the early 21st century was converted to residential housing as Princess Park Manor and Friern Village. The hospital was built as the Second Middlesex County Asylum and was in operation from 1851 to 1993. After the County of London was created in 1889 it continued to serve much of Middlesex and of the newer county, London. During much of this time its smaller prototype Hanwell Asylum also operated.
The Retreat, commonly known as the York Retreat, is a place in England for the treatment of people with mental health needs. Located in Lamel Hill in York, it operates as a not for profit charitable organisation.
Claybury Hospital was a psychiatric hospital in Woodford Bridge, London. It was built to a design by the English architect George Thomas Hine who was a prolific Victorian architect of hospital buildings. It was opened in 1893 making it the Fifth Middlesex County Asylum. Historic England identified the hospital as being "the most important asylum built in England after 1875".
The Rosewood Center was an institution for people with developmental disabilities located on Rosewood Lane in Owings Mills, Maryland.
Mitcham Road Cemetery, previously called Croydon Cemetery, is a cemetery located next to Mitcham Common near Croydon, which is part of the London Borough of Croydon, London. Croydon Crematorium is located inside the cemetery, and are both managed by Croydon Cemeteries and Crematoriums. The cemetery is much larger than other ones in London. There is also a chapel located inside the cemetery.
Brookwood Hospital at Knaphill in Surrey, was established in 1867 by Surrey Quarter Sessions as the second County Asylum, the first being Springfield Asylum in Tooting (1840). A third asylum, Cane Hill Hospital at Coulsdon in the eastern part of the county, followed in 1882.
Netherne-on-the-Hill is a village in Surrey, England, occupying a plateau once home to Netherne Hospital. The village is across a narrow valley from Hooley in north of the borough of Reigate and Banstead; through the valley runs the Hooley Tunnel cutting and A23, the only road from which the village can be accessed, from two designated side roads; a few metres south of the southern T-junction, the road divides into two grades: the A23 to Redhill, 3 miles (4.8 km) south, and the M23 motorway which has a junction with the M25 motorway within Merstham's boundaries, the former village of the hilltop land. The post town, Coulsdon in Greater London is centred 1.8 miles (2.9 km) due north.
Warlingham Park Hospital was a psychiatric hospital in Warlingham, Surrey.
Beechworth Asylum, also known in later years as the Beechworth Hospital for the Insane and Mayday Hills Mental Hospital, is a decommissioned hospital located in Beechworth, a town of Victoria, Australia. Mayday Hills Lunatic Asylum was the second such Hospital to be built in Victoria, being one of the three largest. Mayday Hills Hospital closed in 1995, following 128 years of operation.
Yarra Bend Asylum was the first permanent institution established in Victoria that was devoted to the treatment of the mentally ill. It opened in 1848 as a ward of the Asylum at Tarban Creek in New South Wales. It was not officially called Yarra Bend Asylum until July 1851 when the Port Phillip District separated from the Colony of New South Wales. Prior to the establishment of Yarra Bend, lunatic patients had been kept in the District's gaols. Yarra Bend was proclaimed an Asylum under the provisions of the Lunacy Statute 1867 (No.309) in the Government Gazette in October 1867.
West Park Hospital was a large psychiatric hospital in Epsom, Surrey.
Central State Hospital, originally known as the Central Lunatic Asylum, is a psychiatric hospital in Petersburg, Virginia, United States. It was the first institution in the country for "colored persons of unsound mind".
Netherne Hospital, formerly The Surrey County Asylum at Netherne or Netherne Asylum was a psychiatric hospital in Hooley, Surrey in the United Kingdom.
Napa State Hospital is a psychiatric hospital in Napa, California, founded in 1875. It is located along California State Route 221, the Napa-Vallejo Highway, and is one of California's five state mental hospitals. Napa State Hospital holds civil and forensic mental patients in a sprawling 138-acre campus. According to a hospital spokesperson, there were 2,338 people employed at the facility during the 2016 to 2017 fiscal year, making it one of the region's largest employers.
Hannah Harriet Pedlingham Chaplin, also known by the stage name Lily Harley, was an English actress, singer and dancer who performed in British music halls from the age of 16.