Darlington Memorial Hospital

Darlington Memorial Hospital
County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust
Darlington Memorial Hospital
Location in County Durham
Geography
Location	Darlington, County Durham, England
Coordinates	54°31′48″N1°33′51″W / 54.5300°N 1.5643°W / 54.5300; -1.5643
Organisation
Care system	NHS
Type	District General
Affiliated university	Newcastle University Medical School [1]
Services
Emergency department	Yes
Beds	433 [2]
History
Opened	5 May 1933
Links
Website	www.cddft.nhs.uk
Lists	Hospitals in England

Darlington Memorial Hospital is an acute NHS hospital providing healthcare for people living in southern County Durham, England. It is managed by the County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust.

History

The hospital has its origins in the Darlington Dispensary established in the Market Buildings in 1808. ^[3] It moved to Russell Street as the Darlington Hospital and Dispensary in 1864 and moved to Greenbank Road as the Darlington General Hospital in 1884. ^[3] A new purpose-built hospital was established in Hollyhurst Road in the mid-1920s: the memorial hall, which commemorates people from Darlington who died in the First World War, stems from this era. ^[4] The new hospital was officially opened in 1933 by Prince George (who later became the Duke of Kent), fourth son of George V. ^[5]

The hospital was re-built in the late 1970s and re-opened in its new facilities in 1980. ^[6] A state of the art MRI scanner was installed at the hospital in June 2018. ^[7]

In 2025, the hospital was at the center of a high profile lawsuit between a group of eight nurses and the County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust over their allowance since 2019 of trans women to use the women's changing room. ^{[8] [9] [10]} The suit was backed by The Christian Legal Centre, and by JK Rowling. ^{[11] [12]}

Services

Services include an accident and emergency department which has the capability to deal with most types of trauma. ^[13]

See also

• List of hospitals in England

References

1. "Medical education". County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
2. "County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust: Request for Information" (PDF). County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
3. "Darlington Memorial Hospital". National Archives. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
4. Historic England. "Memorial Hall at Darlington Memorial Hospital (1259261)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 30 July 2018.
5. "Prince George opens Darlington's beautiful £110,000 Memorial Hospital (1933)". British Pathé. British Pathé. 8 February 1933. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
6. "Darlington Memorial Hospital: Official Opening Booklet". 1980. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
7. "Darlington Memorial Hospital receives state-of-the-art MRI scanner". Northern Echo. 22 June 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
8. Perry, Sophie (23 April 2025). "Darlington NHS trust must 'comply' with trans Supreme Court ruling, says government". PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news. Retrieved 24 October 2025.
9. "Darlington nurse says trans colleague sparked abuse flashback". www.bbc.com. 22 October 2025. Retrieved 24 October 2025.
10. "Darlington trans complaint nurse claims 'atmosphere of fear'". www.bbc.com. 23 October 2025. Retrieved 24 October 2025.
11. "Nurses begin tribunal proceedings against NHS trust over trans colleague". The Independent. 22 October 2025. Retrieved 24 October 2025.
12. Perry, Sophie (20 October 2025). "New trans changing-room case – supported by pro-life organisation – set to begin". PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news. Retrieved 24 October 2025.
13. "A&E to be retained at Darlington Memorial Hospital for foreseeable future". Richmondshire Today. 18 May 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2018.

External links

• County Durham and Darlington Foundation NHS Trust website
• NHS Hospital Ratings