Royal Albert Hospital
Encyclopedia
The former Royal Albert Hospital is located in Ashton Road, Lancaster
, Lancashire
, England. It opened in 1870 as an institution for the care and education of children with learning problems. By 1909 there were 662 children in residence. Following new legislation in 1913, adults were also admitted. By the time of the introduction of the National Health Service
in 1948 the hospital had 886 patients, and by the 1960s there were over 1,000 patients. Following legislation in the 1980s, the patients were relocated in the community, and the hospital closed in 1996. The building was acquired by Jamea Al Kauthar to provide Islamic education for girls. The main part of the hospital has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building, and its west lodge has been listed at Grade II.
. Its original name was "Royal Albert Asylum for idiots and imbeciles of the seven northern counties". An additional building, the Winmarleigh Recreation Hall was built at the rear of the hospital and designed by Paley, Austin and Paley (E. G. Paley in partnership with his son, Henry
, and with Hubert Austin
). In 1898-1901, following the death of E. G. Paley, the practice (now Austin and Paley) designed a new south wing, named the Ashton wing.
The hospital was established under the Lunacy Act 1845, at a time when there was little understanding of the difference between learning disability and mental illness, to provide care and education for children with learning disabilities. It took patients from the seven northern counties of England between the ages of 6 and 15. It was a voluntary hospital, whose financial provision came entirely from public subscription. The foundation stone was laid in 1868. The first patients entered the hospital in December 1870, and in August 1871 the first girls were admitted. By 1874 it had 196 patients. In 1884 the hospital was renamed as the "Royal Albert Asylum for the Care, Education and Training of Idiots, Imbeciles and Weak-Minded children and Young Persons of the Northern Counties". By 1909 there were 662 patients in residence, 85 per cent of whom were aged under 15. During the following year the hospital was renamed again, this time to "The Royal Albert Institution, Lancaster".
Following the Mental Deficiency Act 1913, the nature of the hospital changed, as it was determined that no more than 10 per cent of its patients should be under the age of 16. In 1948 the hospital became part of the National Health Service
, and its name was changed to "Royal Albert Hospital". By this time it had 886 patients, of whom 45 per cent were aged over 35, and only 12 per cent were under 15. In 1958 two new blocks were built, each containing 54 beds, to accommodate the increasing number of patients. By the middle of the 1960s the hospital contained over 1,000 patients. From the 1980s, Care in the Community
legislation led to the relocation of patients into the community, so that by 1990 only about 500 patients were still resident. Further relocation of patients led to the closure of the hospital in 1996. The building was acquired by Jamea Al Kauthar for use as an educational establishment for Muslim girls.
with ashlar
dressings and bands of red sandstone from St Bees
. The roofs are in green slate
from Coniston
. Its architectural style is Gothic Revival
. Hartwell and Pevsner
in the Buildings of England
series describe its appearance as that of a hôtel de ville (French town hall). The main front of the building is symmetrical, in two storeys with attics and a basement. The roofs are hipped
, and incorporate dormer
windows. The front consists of a central block of six bays
, with eleven-bay wings on each side. In the centre of each wing is a three-bay cant
ed projection, and at both ends is a wider three-bay pavilion
under a separate roof. In the wings, most of the windows in the ground floor are pairs of lancets
under an arched hoodmould
, and most of the windows in the upper storey have two lights under a flat lintel
. The windows in the projections and pavilions are more ornate, most of them consisting of a triple lancet under an oculus
. The dormers contain cross casement window
s, and on the summits of the dormers are filial
s. In the ground floor of the central block is a porch with three arches carried on red sandstone columns. Above the porch in the first floor is a canted oriel window
. Behind the porch and rising above it is a three-stage tower. In the middle stage is a clock face flanked by statues in Longridge
stone of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, carved by Bridgeman of Lichfield
. The statues stand in an arcade
of trefoil
ed arches. At the four corners of the tower are turret
s, and the roof of the tower is steeply pitched, containing three tiers of gable
d dormers. To the rear of the building are two further wings, each comprising eight bays with three-bay pavilions at their ends.
with an ornate wrought iron
balustrade
. The roof timbers are exposed, and the hall is lit from above. Beyond this is a five-bay hall with two-light transomed
windows. The windows contain small pieces of stained glass depicting badges of the benefactors of the hospital. Also in this hall are galleries.
gable. On the gable side is a two-light stair window above a quatrefoil
, and another two-light window. Facing the road is a canted bay containing mullion
ed windows. The lodge is entered from the pedestrian walkway.
Since 1996 the building has been used as "an academic establishment aiming to educate girls over the age of eleven in a safe, secure, happy and Islamic environment". Originating with 60 girls, as of 2011 it has about 400 residential students on its roll. The students attend Islamic theology courses in the morning in the college, and in the afternoons travel to Preston Sixth Form College
to study other subjects.
Lancaster, Lancashire
Lancaster is the county town of Lancashire, England. It is situated on the River Lune and has a population of 45,952. Lancaster is a constituent settlement of the wider City of Lancaster, local government district which has a population of 133,914 and encompasses several outlying towns, including...
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, England. It opened in 1870 as an institution for the care and education of children with learning problems. By 1909 there were 662 children in residence. Following new legislation in 1913, adults were also admitted. By the time of the introduction of the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
in 1948 the hospital had 886 patients, and by the 1960s there were over 1,000 patients. Following legislation in the 1980s, the patients were relocated in the community, and the hospital closed in 1996. The building was acquired by Jamea Al Kauthar to provide Islamic education for girls. The main part of the hospital has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II* listed building, and its west lodge has been listed at Grade II.
History
The hospital was built between 1868 and 1873, and designed by the local architect E. G. PaleyEdward Graham Paley
Edward Graham Paley, usually known as E. G. Paley, , was an English architect who practised in Lancaster, Lancashire, in the second half of the 19th century.-Education and career:...
. Its original name was "Royal Albert Asylum for idiots and imbeciles of the seven northern counties". An additional building, the Winmarleigh Recreation Hall was built at the rear of the hospital and designed by Paley, Austin and Paley (E. G. Paley in partnership with his son, Henry
Henry Paley
Henry Anderson Paley was an English architect, the only son of Edward Paley, also an architect, of Lancaster. He started his training with his father and Hubert Austin, then went on to the London office of T. E. Collcutt. He returned to his father's practice in 1882 and became a partner in 1886...
, and with Hubert Austin
Hubert Austin
Hubert James Austin was an English architect who practiced in Lancaster. With his partners he designed many churches and other buildings, mainly in the northwest of England.-Early life and career:...
). In 1898-1901, following the death of E. G. Paley, the practice (now Austin and Paley) designed a new south wing, named the Ashton wing.
The hospital was established under the Lunacy Act 1845, at a time when there was little understanding of the difference between learning disability and mental illness, to provide care and education for children with learning disabilities. It took patients from the seven northern counties of England between the ages of 6 and 15. It was a voluntary hospital, whose financial provision came entirely from public subscription. The foundation stone was laid in 1868. The first patients entered the hospital in December 1870, and in August 1871 the first girls were admitted. By 1874 it had 196 patients. In 1884 the hospital was renamed as the "Royal Albert Asylum for the Care, Education and Training of Idiots, Imbeciles and Weak-Minded children and Young Persons of the Northern Counties". By 1909 there were 662 patients in residence, 85 per cent of whom were aged under 15. During the following year the hospital was renamed again, this time to "The Royal Albert Institution, Lancaster".
Following the Mental Deficiency Act 1913, the nature of the hospital changed, as it was determined that no more than 10 per cent of its patients should be under the age of 16. In 1948 the hospital became part of the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
, and its name was changed to "Royal Albert Hospital". By this time it had 886 patients, of whom 45 per cent were aged over 35, and only 12 per cent were under 15. In 1958 two new blocks were built, each containing 54 beds, to accommodate the increasing number of patients. By the middle of the 1960s the hospital contained over 1,000 patients. From the 1980s, Care in the Community
Care in the Community
Care in the Community is the British policy of deinstitutionalization, treating and caring for physically and mentally disabled people in their homes rather than in an institution...
legislation led to the relocation of patients into the community, so that by 1990 only about 500 patients were still resident. Further relocation of patients led to the closure of the hospital in 1996. The building was acquired by Jamea Al Kauthar for use as an educational establishment for Muslim girls.
Exterior
The main building is constructed in sandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
with ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...
dressings and bands of red sandstone from St Bees
St Bees
St Bees is a village and civil parish in the Copeland district of Cumbria, in the North of England, about five miles west southwest of Whitehaven. The parish had a population of 1,717 according to the 2001 census. Within the parish is St...
. The roofs are in green slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
from Coniston
Coniston, Cumbria
Coniston is a village and civil parish in the Furness region of Cumbria, England. It is located in the southern part of the Lake District National Park, between Coniston Water, the third longest lake in the Lake District, and Coniston Old Man; about north east of Barrow-in-Furness.-Geography and...
. Its architectural style is Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
. Hartwell and Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
in the Buildings of England
Pevsner Architectural Guides
The Pevsner Architectural Guides are a series of guide books to the architecture of the British Isles. Begun in the 1940s by art historian Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, the 46 volumes of the Buildings of England series were published between 1951 and 1975. The series was then extended to Scotland and...
series describe its appearance as that of a hôtel de ville (French town hall). The main front of the building is symmetrical, in two storeys with attics and a basement. The roofs are hipped
Hipped roof
Hipped roof can refer to:*A hip roof, a type of roof where all sides are sloped*A tented roof, a conical style of roof seen in Russian architecture...
, and incorporate dormer
Dormer
A dormer is a structural element of a building that protrudes from the plane of a sloping roof surface. Dormers are used, either in original construction or as later additions, to create usable space in the roof of a building by adding headroom and usually also by enabling addition of windows.Often...
windows. The front consists of a central block of six bays
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
, with eleven-bay wings on each side. In the centre of each wing is a three-bay cant
Cant
Cant, canting, or canted may refer to:*Empty, uncritical thought or talk - see *The slope or angle at which something is set, such as the frames of a ship's hull - again, see *Cant , a secret language...
ed projection, and at both ends is a wider three-bay pavilion
Pavilion
In architecture a pavilion has two main meanings.-Free-standing structure:Pavilion may refer to a free-standing structure sited a short distance from a main residence, whose architecture makes it an object of pleasure. Large or small, there is usually a connection with relaxation and pleasure in...
under a separate roof. In the wings, most of the windows in the ground floor are pairs of lancets
Lancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
under an arched hoodmould
Hood mould
In architecture, a hood mould, also called a label mould or dripstone, is an external moulded projection from a wall over an opening to throw off rainwater...
, and most of the windows in the upper storey have two lights under a flat lintel
Lintel (architecture)
A lintel can be a load-bearing building component, a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented structural item. It is often found over portals, doors, and windows.-Structural uses:...
. The windows in the projections and pavilions are more ornate, most of them consisting of a triple lancet under an oculus
Oculus
An Oculus, circular window, or rain-hole is a feature of Classical architecture since the 16th century. They are often denoted by their French name, oeil de boeuf, or "bull's-eye". Such circular or oval windows express the presence of a mezzanine on a building's façade without competing for...
. The dormers contain cross casement window
Casement window
A casement window is a window that is attached to its frame by one or more hinges. Casement windows are hinged at the side. A casement window (or casement) is a window that is attached to its frame by one or more hinges. Casement windows are hinged at the side. A casement window (or casement) is a...
s, and on the summits of the dormers are filial
Filial
Filial may refer to:* Filial church, a Roman Catholic church to which is annexed the cure of souls, but which remains dependent on another church* Filial piety, one of the virtues in Confucian thought...
s. In the ground floor of the central block is a porch with three arches carried on red sandstone columns. Above the porch in the first floor is a canted oriel window
Oriel window
Oriel windows are a form of bay window commonly found in Gothic architecture, which project from the main wall of the building but do not reach to the ground. Corbels or brackets are often used to support this kind of window. They are seen in combination with the Tudor arch. This type of window was...
. Behind the porch and rising above it is a three-stage tower. In the middle stage is a clock face flanked by statues in Longridge
Longridge
Longridge is a small town and civil parish in the borough of Ribble Valley in Lancashire, England. It is situated north-east of the city of Preston, at the western end of Longridge Fell, a long ridge above the River Ribble. Its nearest neighbours are Grimsargh and the Roman town of Ribchester , ...
stone of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, carved by Bridgeman of Lichfield
Lichfield
Lichfield is a cathedral city, civil parish and district in Staffordshire, England. One of eight civil parishes with city status in England, Lichfield is situated roughly north of Birmingham...
. The statues stand in an arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
of trefoil
Trefoil
Trefoil is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings used in architecture and Christian symbolism...
ed arches. At the four corners of the tower are turret
Turret
In architecture, a turret is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle. Turrets were used to provide a projecting defensive position allowing covering fire to the adjacent wall in the days of military fortification...
s, and the roof of the tower is steeply pitched, containing three tiers of gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
d dormers. To the rear of the building are two further wings, each comprising eight bays with three-bay pavilions at their ends.
Interior
Inside the central block is a triple arch behind which is an imperial staircaseImperial staircase
An Imperial staircase is the name given to a staircase with divided flights. Usually the first flight rises to a half-landing and then divides into two symmetrical flights both rising with an equal number of steps and turns to the next floor. The feature is reputed to have first been used at El...
with an ornate wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
balustrade
Baluster
A baluster is a moulded shaft, square or of lathe-turned form, one of various forms of spindle in woodwork, made of stone or wood and sometimes of metal, standing on a unifying footing, and supporting the coping of a parapet or the handrail of a staircase. Multiplied in this way, they form a...
. The roof timbers are exposed, and the hall is lit from above. Beyond this is a five-bay hall with two-light transomed
Transom (architectural)
In architecture, a transom is the term given to a transverse beam or bar in a frame, or to the crosspiece separating a door or the like from a window or fanlight above it. Transom is also the customary U.S. word used for a transom light, the window over this crosspiece...
windows. The windows contain small pieces of stained glass depicting badges of the benefactors of the hospital. Also in this hall are galleries.
West lodge
On Ashton Road at the entrance to the drive to the former hospital is a lodge, built in about 1873. It is also constructed in sandstone with ashlar dressings, red sandstone bands, and green slate steeply pitched roofs, and is in Gothic Revival style. The main part of the lodge is in two storeys, and contains a wide arch for the carriageway, and a smaller narrower arch for pedestrians. In the upper storey are three trefoiled single-light windows. The roof is hipped and carries lead finials. To the right of this is a chimney with bands of red sandstone. On the right of the building is a short lower wing with a copedCoping (architecture)
Coping , consists of the capping or covering of a wall.A splayed or wedge coping slopes in a single direction; a saddle coping slopes to either side of a central high point....
gable. On the gable side is a two-light stair window above a quatrefoil
Quatrefoil
The word quatrefoil etymologically means "four leaves", and applies to general four-lobed shapes in various contexts.-In heraldry:In heraldic terminology, a quatrefoil is a representation of a flower with four petals, or a leaf with four leaflets . It is sometimes shown "slipped", i.e. with an...
, and another two-light window. Facing the road is a canted bay containing mullion
Mullion
A mullion is a vertical structural element which divides adjacent window units. The primary purpose of the mullion is as a structural support to an arch or lintel above the window opening. Its secondary purpose may be as a rigid support to the glazing of the window...
ed windows. The lodge is entered from the pedestrian walkway.
Present day
The main part of the hospital was designed as a Grade II* listed building on 30 November 1970. On the same date the west lodge was listed at Grade II.Since 1996 the building has been used as "an academic establishment aiming to educate girls over the age of eleven in a safe, secure, happy and Islamic environment". Originating with 60 girls, as of 2011 it has about 400 residential students on its roll. The students attend Islamic theology courses in the morning in the college, and in the afternoons travel to Preston Sixth Form College
Preston College
Preston College is a further education college in the city of Preston, Lancashire, England. The college originally opened as W.R. Tuson College in September 1974 and was renamed on 1 September 1989.-Campus:...
to study other subjects.