St George's Stafford - October 2014

[UrbexBaby]

First post so please be gentle and pull me up on any incorrect info

HISTORY

The Staffordshire County Asylum opened in 1818 in the town of Stafford, it was one of the first asylums designed for non private patients nicknamed the ‘pauper’s asylum’. It was designed by architect Joseph Potter and was able to house up to 120 patients. In 1879 a large expansion of the grounds allowed it house in the excess of up to a 1000 patients on site and it was one of only 3 asylums in England to be designed in the style of a country house.

Notorious for internally being one of the most prison like asylums containing corridor after corridor lined with secure cells, the addition of the suicide cages fitted to the stairwell enforced this grim impression even further, being installed after a female patient threw herself over three flights of stairs landing in the reception.

The asylum was taken over by the NHS in the 1950’s and renamed St George’s Hospital and closed in the 1995 with the remaining patients integrated into community care. The Hospital has remain empty for over 20 years and has become a target for vandals suffering a huge arson attack in 2010.

The Large main building is Grade II listed and work is about to start to refurbish the hospital into apartments. In 2008 Bovis homes started building work to complete a 100 new homes on the old hospital grounds with work starting mid September to convert the main building in sections starting with the East wing through to the west.

THE EXPLORE

So this weekend after work I decided on a revisit to St George’s hospital in Stafford as on our previous visit we only managed some external due to on going building work nearby. This however, had been playing on my mind as I knew the site was up for redevelopment and it was happening sooner rather than later and if I didn’t get in there soon I’d possibly miss my chance to photograph St George’s.

Arriving on site it was pretty quiet apart from a few groups of kids that decided to try and tag along with me, but adamant on drawing as much attention to themselves as humanly possible I shook them off sharpish and made my escape inside.

Most of the inside is pretty trashed due to 20 years plus of neglect and an arson attack in 2010, leaving large parts gutted. Internally the downstairs mid section is pretty much a shell with all floors and the roof missing, I’d been warned on several occasions about the floors inside and although the upper floors were a bit ropey in places with some careful footwork I was able to navigate my way across most of them.

There was no building work started as far as I could see everything was pretty much the same as when I visited in September.

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Thanks for looking and hope you like

 

[Lara]

Nice first post, and nice write up there, thanks for sharing

 

[skeleton key]

Thanks for the cool write up and images shared as is simply the name of the game.

I hope you enjoy as that is what counts and win all day long

 

[UrbexBaby]

Thanks guys appreciate the feedback

 

[urblex]

Nice first report thanks for sharing. "but adamant on drawing as much attention to themselves as humanly possible" lol that sounds familiar, kids these days don't seem to get the concept of stealth or keeping a low profile

 

[UrbexBaby]

Tell me about it lol how nobody turned up to move them on I'll never know?! felt like a bloody babysitter telling them to watch out for the sheer drop as they were hanging over walls with nothing on the other side. I had images in my head of having to ring the ambulance service to come and fish these kids out of piles of rubble

 

[jones-y-gog]

Hmmm that's seen better days!! But it's as much about the experience as anything else

 

[Perjury Saint]

Blimey! Shes PROPER battered! Got some nice shots though

 

[UrbexBaby]

I'm surprised its still standing to be honest but definitely worth a visit if your in the area even if it just to see the suicide cages on the stairs just look out for the drop at the top, 3 flights up and nothing but fresh air in front of you

 

[shaddam]

looks like an interesting looking place there

 

[UrbexBaby]

looks like an interesting looking place there

It is it drove me mad thinking about this place I ended up dreaming about it

 

[The_Raw]

Never seen those suicide cages before, awesome (in a morbid fascination type way)! Looks like an absolute mess of a place but sometimes those places can be mesmerising in their own right

 

[UrbexBaby]

Never seen those suicide cages before, awesome (in a morbid fascination type way)! Looks like an absolute mess of a place but sometimes those places can be mesmerising in their own right

aren't they fabulous! ( In the grimmest possible way lol) it is absolutely trashed but very interesting and trying to avoid going through the floor is always fun

 

[Stussy]

Very nice, good set of pics