From The Neolithic To The Sea: A Journey From The Past To The Present

Aston Hall Hospital

Statistics
Category
County
Coordinates
Grid
Condition
Age
Admission
Hospital
Derbyshire
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Derelict
1924
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  • History
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Aston Hall Hospital is located in Derbyshire in the small village of Aston on Trent. It is now a derelict site with new houses being built on the once extensive grounds of the hospital.

In the early 1600s, Aston Hall belonged to the Hunt family, but it changing hands many times until a family called the Holden brought the hall and owned it for about 250 years.

In 1898 Aston Hall, after being rebuilt several times, was sold to Colonel William Dickson Winterbottom, of Manchester. It was first used as an auxiliary hospital in the first World War. After his death in 1924 the estate was broken up and sold, the Nottingham Corporation bought the Hall and turned it into a psychiatric hospital.

The hospital has always dealt with patients suffering from mental health problems and learning disabilities. The site is large, with many buildings know as 'houses'. It is complete with a hydrotherapy pool, sensory room and hall. These were built as part of a £4m revamp in 1994. The pool was the only one of its kind in Southern Derbyshire. It had hoists to help lower people into the temperature-controlled water, and is ideal for keeping severely disabled people's limbs supple. Each of the ‘houses’ could house up to 50 patients but in later years this capacity dropped as patients where transferred to other hospitals in the area.

Against strong opposition from residents and patients' families, Derbyshire Mental Health Services NHS Trust planed to shut Aston Hall Hospital in 1998, finally achieving this in 2004.

The hospital was subject to an arson attack in the hydrotherapy pool, on November 6th 2008, which damaged the roof and various parts of the building.