- Joined
- Feb 25, 2015
- Messages
- 34
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Some History
The hospital, or Brecon and Radnor Asylum as it was first called, was officially opened on 22nd February 1903. This consisted of the main building (12 wards 6 male and 6 female), Isolation Ward and Farm Ward; and cost £128,710.12.8d. The two female wards East 7 and 8 were added some years later.
Built originally to house 352 patients, the main building was erected to the familiar butterfly plan of the era. The estate consisted of some 261 acres.
In addition to the farm, the service departments included tailor, baker, shoe- maker and printing shops and later a photography dark room when a photograph of each patient was taken and affixed to their respective case notes. (This practise continued until after World War II). The market gardens consisted of about 8 acres and an additional asset was a steam powered lorry, one of the first ever to be used in the area. This was used mainly to haul coal and other goods from the local railway station.
Patients were classified as follows:-
Private (fee paying, full cost of maintaining patient per week)
Rate Aided Voluntary
Rate Aided Certified, Chargeable to rates from the area from whence they came.
Criminal Lunatic
Pauper Lunatic
With the inception of the National Health Service Act on 5th July 1948, this hospital became the headquarters of a Group consisting of Mid-Wales Hospital, Brynhyfryd Hospital, Forden and Llys Maldwyn Hospital, Caersws; under the management of the Welsh Border Hospital Management Committee. It is interesting to note that during the post war years, the population of patients began to rise again. Some of the major changes which have taken place are listed below:
1953 Female general bathroom converted to female Occupational Therapy Department and hairdressing salon. First T.V. sets introduced.
1954 Male Occupational Therapy Department established in what is now the Engineers Stores, with the integration of sexes. Male general bathroom conversion to Nurse Training School commenced and opened in May 1955.
With the advent of 'Care in the Community' and changing attitudes towards mental healthcare, services at the hospital were wound down during the 1990s and the last wards closed in 1999. Following closure, the buildings and surrounding estate were sold to the former Chief Medical Officer for just £227,000.
The visit
This is my 2nd visit here and I went with a friend, Brum. The place is unbelievably huge, we were on site for about 3 hours and only got round 50% at the very most. The place is slowly rotting away and soon will just be a pile of rubble, in some places whole floors had dropped where all that remains are the doors. Most of the inside looks like 1970's decor, it's only really the outside of the building that has any original features left. Anything of any value has long been taken, apart from the hundreds of doors!! There are even some hidden safes that have been angle grinded open. Even the old fireplaces have been ripped out.
Again it's sad to see such a huge bunch of buildings left to rot and in the space of only 5 years, it has gone from being unoccupied but still intact to completely derelict, rotten and damp!
[
There's a whole load of high res pics on Flickr, 100+ and I still haven't seen it all!!
https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5om3sE
The hospital, or Brecon and Radnor Asylum as it was first called, was officially opened on 22nd February 1903. This consisted of the main building (12 wards 6 male and 6 female), Isolation Ward and Farm Ward; and cost £128,710.12.8d. The two female wards East 7 and 8 were added some years later.
Built originally to house 352 patients, the main building was erected to the familiar butterfly plan of the era. The estate consisted of some 261 acres.
In addition to the farm, the service departments included tailor, baker, shoe- maker and printing shops and later a photography dark room when a photograph of each patient was taken and affixed to their respective case notes. (This practise continued until after World War II). The market gardens consisted of about 8 acres and an additional asset was a steam powered lorry, one of the first ever to be used in the area. This was used mainly to haul coal and other goods from the local railway station.
Patients were classified as follows:-
Private (fee paying, full cost of maintaining patient per week)
Rate Aided Voluntary
Rate Aided Certified, Chargeable to rates from the area from whence they came.
Criminal Lunatic
Pauper Lunatic
With the inception of the National Health Service Act on 5th July 1948, this hospital became the headquarters of a Group consisting of Mid-Wales Hospital, Brynhyfryd Hospital, Forden and Llys Maldwyn Hospital, Caersws; under the management of the Welsh Border Hospital Management Committee. It is interesting to note that during the post war years, the population of patients began to rise again. Some of the major changes which have taken place are listed below:
1953 Female general bathroom converted to female Occupational Therapy Department and hairdressing salon. First T.V. sets introduced.
1954 Male Occupational Therapy Department established in what is now the Engineers Stores, with the integration of sexes. Male general bathroom conversion to Nurse Training School commenced and opened in May 1955.
With the advent of 'Care in the Community' and changing attitudes towards mental healthcare, services at the hospital were wound down during the 1990s and the last wards closed in 1999. Following closure, the buildings and surrounding estate were sold to the former Chief Medical Officer for just £227,000.
The visit
This is my 2nd visit here and I went with a friend, Brum. The place is unbelievably huge, we were on site for about 3 hours and only got round 50% at the very most. The place is slowly rotting away and soon will just be a pile of rubble, in some places whole floors had dropped where all that remains are the doors. Most of the inside looks like 1970's decor, it's only really the outside of the building that has any original features left. Anything of any value has long been taken, apart from the hundreds of doors!! There are even some hidden safes that have been angle grinded open. Even the old fireplaces have been ripped out.
Again it's sad to see such a huge bunch of buildings left to rot and in the space of only 5 years, it has gone from being unoccupied but still intact to completely derelict, rotten and damp!
[
There's a whole load of high res pics on Flickr, 100+ and I still haven't seen it all!!
https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5om3sE
