Towers Hospital
The Towers Hospital was a mental health facility in Humberstone, Leicestershire, England. The administration building, which became known as George Hine House, is a Grade II listed building.[1]
Towers Hospital | |
---|---|
Shown in Leicestershire | |
Geography | |
Location | Humberstone, Leicestershire, England |
Coordinates | 52.6498°N 1.0911°W |
Organisation | |
Care system | NHS |
Type | Specialist |
Services | |
Emergency department | N/A |
Speciality | Psychiatric Hospital |
History | |
Opened | 1869 |
Closed | 2013 |
Links | |
Lists | Hospitals in England |
History
The site chosen for the hospital had previously been occupied by Victoria House, the former home of Benjamin Broadbent, a master builder.[2] The hospital, which was designed by Edward Loney Stephens using a corridor layout with compact arrow additions, opened as the Leicester Borough Lunatic Asylum in September 1869.[3] An extension to the male ward, designed by George Thomas Hine, was completed in 1883 and a corresponding extension to the female ward, also designed by Hine, was completed in 1890.[3] A bath house, also designed by Hine, was added in 1913.[3] The facility became the Leicester City Mental Hospital in the 1920s.[3] Three detached villa properties, built in the 1930s, were made available to the Emergency Medical Service during the Second World War.[3] The facility joined the National Health Service as the Towers Hospital in 1948.[4]
After the introduction of Care in the Community in the early 1980s, the hospital went into a period of decline and closed in April 2013.[3] The administration building, which became known as George Hine House, was converted for use as a Sikh free school in 2014.[5] Several of the other buildings, including the original main block with superintendent's residence above, have been redeveloped for residential use.[3]
References
- Historic England. "Former Towers Hospital (1376811)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- "The Early Years". Leicestershire County Council. 12 August 2013. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
- "Towers Hospital". County Asylums. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- "Towers Hospital". National Archives. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
- "George Hine House to become Leicester Sikh free school". BBC. 30 December 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2019.