St. Thomas' Hospital (Stockport)

St. Thomas’ Hospital, formerly known as the Shaw Heath Hospital, is a derelict former psychiatric hospital and Grade II listed building in Stockport, Greater Manchester, England.

St. Thomas’ Hospital
St. Thomas’ Hospital is located in Greater Manchester
St. Thomas’ Hospital
St. Thomas’ Hospital
Location within Greater Manchester
St. Thomas’ Hospital is located in the United Kingdom
St. Thomas’ Hospital
St. Thomas’ Hospital
St. Thomas’ Hospital (the United Kingdom)
Former namesStockport Union Workhouse
Shaw Heath Workhouse
Shaw Heath Institution
Shaw Heath Hospital
General information
StatusDerelict
TypeHospital
LocationShaw Heath, Cale Green, Stockport, SK3 8BL
Coordinates53.40193°N 2.16084°W / 53.40193; -2.16084
Completed1841
Closed2004

History

The building that became St. Thomas’ Hospital was originally a workhouse known as the Stockport Union Workhouse[1] (though some records list the name as Shaw Heath Workhouse)[2]. The building was designed by Henry Bowman [3] and opened on Christmas Day in 1841. It was intended to house 690 inmates[4]

The workhouse became known as ‘The Grubber’, and in 1894 an investigation by the British Medical Journal reported on several issues with the conditions of working life within the Stockport Union Workhouse and infirmary, detailing overcrowding, disease, poor living conditions and ineffective management.[5][6]

Between 1948 and 1949, the building was renamed to Shaw Heath Hospital. It became St. Thomas’ Hospital in 1954.[2] The hospital typically treated psychiatric patients and the elderly.[7]

The building was first listed in 1975.[8]

Stockport Arts and Health, an organisation that was set up in 1993 to promote arts initiatives within the health service in Stockport, moved to a former ward at St. Thomas’ Hospital in 1998. Later in 1999, the ward was converted and became the Stockport Centre for Arts and Health and operated as a workshop space and exhibition.[9]

The hospital was closed in 2004.

Since its closure, St. Thomas’ hospital has become a site of interest for urban explorers and paranormal investigators. British paranormal investigation show Most Haunted recorded an episode exploring the hospital building in 2007.[10]

Redevelopment

There have been several attempts to renovate and repurpose the St. Thomas’ Hospital site. Plans were announced on the closure of the hospital to repurpose the buildings as a ‘GP super-centre’ and flats for first-time homeowners,[7] but it appears that these plans had been abandoned after Stockport College acquired the site.

Restoration work to the main building was carried out around 2008. The restoration was planned by architectural firm Austin-Smith:Lord and was part of a £100 million development of the adjoining Stockport College campus,[11] who had acquired the hospital after it had closed in 2004.[4] The work was concluded in 2010 and was intended to be used as staff accommodation, but the building remained vacant after work had completed.[12]

Redevelopment of the site was approved in March of 2021 following plans from the Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation which detailed a dementia care and senior living facility called The Academy of Living Well. In 2022, the project (known as St Thomas’ Gardens) was provided a formal notice allowing construction work to begin.[13][14]

See also

References
  1. Johnson, Helen; Statham, Nick. "Watch haunting video showing inside derelict Victorian hospital and workhouse known as The Grubber". Manchester Evening News. Manchester Evening News.
  2. Hospital Records Database. "Details: St Thomas' Hospital Stockport, Stockport". The National Archives. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  3. "Former Workhouse, Shaw Heath, Stockport, Greater Manchester". Historic England. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  4. Higginbotham, Peter. "Stockport, Cheshire". The Workhouse. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  5. Higginbotham, Peter. "BMJ Reports on the Nursing and Administration of Provincial Workhouses and Infirmaries, 1894-5". The Workhouse. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  6. Watson, Alex. "This abandoned psychiatric hospital in Stockport has a gruesome history". Proper Mcr. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  7. Manchester Evening News. "It's the end of an era for historic St Thomas's". Manchester Evening News. Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  8. "ST THOMAS HOSPITAL (ORIGINAL BUILDING WITH THE REAR WING IN THE COURTYARD)". Historic England. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  9. "Stockport Arts & Health: archives". Wellcome Collection. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  10. Beattie, Karl; Fielding, Yvette (13 February 2007). "Stockport Workhouse". Most Haunted. Season 9. Living.
  11. Manchester Evening News. "A glimpse into Stockport's rich Victorian history". Manchester Evening News. Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  12. Statham, Nick. "Historic former hospital could have new lease of life as 'intergenerational community'". Manchester Evening News. Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  13. Townsend, Sarah. "March decision targeted for St Thomas'". North West Place. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  14. Whelan, Dan. "Path clear for Stockport's St Thomas' Gardens". North West Place. Retrieved 24 October 2023.

Austin-Smith:Lord (Architects involved in Stockport College renovation)

St. Thomas Gardens Project Page (Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation)

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