Bootham Park Hospital facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Bootham Park Hospital |
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| Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust | |
Frontage of Bootham Park Hospital as seen from Bootham
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| Geography | |
| Location | York, North Yorkshire, England |
| Organisation | |
| Care system | NHS |
| Hospital type | Specialist |
| Services | |
| Emergency department | No |
| Speciality | Mental Health |
| History | |
| Founded | 1777 |
| Closed | 2015 |
Bootham Park Hospital was a special hospital in York, England. It helped people with mental health issues. The hospital building is very old and important, listed as a Grade I listed building. It was managed by the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust.
Contents
The Story of Bootham Park Hospital
Building a Place to Help People
In 1772, a group of important people in York decided to build a place for people needing mental health care. This group was led by Robert Hay Drummond, who was the Archbishop of York. They called it the "County Lunatic Asylum, York."
They chose a famous architect named John Carr to design the building. Many people donated money to help build it. By 1773, they had enough money, and Carr's plans for 54 patients were approved. The building was finished in 1777.
Changes and Joining the NHS
Later, some people had concerns about how patients were cared for at the asylum. Because of these concerns, and after a patient named Hannah Mills died, a local group called the Quakers decided to open a new asylum. They started The Retreat in 1790.
The original asylum became Bootham Park Hospital in 1904. In 1948, it joined the National Health Service (NHS). This meant it became part of the public healthcare system in the UK.
Why Bootham Park Hospital Closed
In September 2015, the hospital building was inspected by the Care Quality Commission. They found that the building was not suitable anymore. It was ordered to close very quickly, by the end of the month.
Staff were given only five days' notice to close the hospital. Bootham Park Hospital officially closed on October 1, 2015. Patients had to be moved suddenly to other places, some of which were quite far away.
What Happened After the Closure?
An independent report looked into why the hospital closed so suddenly. It found several problems:
- The local health group, called the Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group, did not manage the patient transfer well.
- Another health trust, Leeds & York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, had not properly looked after the building.
- The company responsible for NHS buildings, NHS Property Services, did not understand how difficult it would be to update such an old building.
After the closure, a smaller unit with 24 beds opened in 2016. This replaced some of the beds from Bootham Park Hospital. Outpatient clinics also started again in February 2016. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, there was talk of using the old hospital building for extra beds if needed.
