London Stories
Extraordinary pictures of London's derelict hospitals that were left to wither and rot
Many of the hospitals have now been redeveloped but there are some where the work has only just begun
Martin ElveryLondon Stories Writer
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It's well known that the NHS is underfunded and it's a tough job keeping all its buildings and estates in good order.
Yet we perhaps don't expect hospital buildings to fall derelict.
Across London are flaking remains of hospital buildings which, somehow, seem a poignant reminder of the shortages of cash that hospitals face - but also make incredibly striking monuments to a time gone by.
They are sometimes a bit spooky, occasionally scary, but all have an incredible faded charm.
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Author, photographer and tour guide Paul Talling has been photographing Derelict London for nearly 20 years.
He's gained access to some of London's most amazing decaying buildings and he's given MyLondon permission to use some of his images of the capital's flaking hospitals.
Many of the hospitals he's visited have now been redeveloped but there are some where the work has only just begun.
One site where there seems little progress is the Samaritan Hospital for Women on Marylebone Road.
Samaritan Hospital for Women
The Samaritan Women's Hospital was once the best of its kind in the UK (Paul Talling)
This red brick and terracotta hospital was opened way back in 1889 but now its remains look spooky and forlorn.
Its windows are dirty and grey and are backed with old blinds or curtains so you can't see in.
But the stunning Romanesque architecture of the building is still beautiful.
At the rear of the derelict Samaritan hospital (Paul Talling)
Around 1903 it became a dedicated women's gynaecological hospital, specialising in surgery.
It quickly became one of the UK's most important hospitals of this type.
The hospital became part of the NHS as the Samaritan Hospital for Women in 1948.
The beautiful Romanesque architecture of Springfield Hospital still looks really grand (Paul Talling)
Then in 1987, the Hospital building was listed by English Heritage as Grade II.
But sadly it closed in 1997.
Currently it seems the hospital is being used by the Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust to support their work at the Western Eye Hospital next door.
Springfield University Hospital
The mock Tudor style of the hospital makes it look like an abandoned castle (Paul Talling)
Mental health services have been provided at Springfield University Hospital since 1841, when it opened in Glenburnie Road, Tooting.
The site was chosen for its "southern aspect, good air and ready supply of water"
Constructed in Tudor style with subtle angles and variegated brickwork, the psychiatric hospital was praised in architectural journals at the time, though its gables and twisted chimneys have since been removed.
Areas of the hospital have been shut for years (Paul Talling)
Over time as mental health treatment changed, more and more people were cared for in the community.
And so, the hospital shrunk to just 286 beds.
The hospital has now sold off some of the dilapidated Victorian-era buildings to raise money for building new facilities.
The spooky disused areas of Springfield Hospital (Paul Talling)
Two new mental health facilities are now being constructed to provide state-of-the-art inpatient units.
Some 800 homes and a new 32-acre park will also be built on the site.
It's set to open in 2022.
Barnes Hospital
The boarded up windows at Barnes Hospital (Paul Talling)
Barnes Isolation Hospital opened in 1889 on South Worple Way, East Sheen, to treat and care for patients with infectious diseases such as diphtheria and scarlet fever.
It was eventually renamed Barnes Hospital and provided community and inpatient mental health services.
However its usage shrunk to around 25 per cent of the site and until recently much of it remained derelict.
In March 2019 the Trust sold half of the Barnes Hospital site to a residential developer.
An old disused mortuary at the Barnes site (Paul Talling)
South West London & St George's Mental Health NHS Trust got planning permission approved in September 2020 for a new mixed-use development including a health centre and a special educational needs school.
The Trust says it is continuing to work with LocatED - an arm's-length body of the Department for Education - to build these new facilities at the Barnes site, due to open in late 2023.
You can find many more images of London hospitals that have been left derelict over the years on the Derelict London website here.
You can also find information about Paul Talling's book Derelict London here and book walking tours with him here.
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