The facility was commissioned to replace the aging Londonderry County Asylum on Strand Road, which had become overcrowded.[1][2]
The first sod was cut for the new building on Clooney Road on 1 June 1903. It was designed by Matthew Alexander Robinson in the Victorian style, built in brick with a cement render finish and was completed in May 1905.[3]
Two gate lodges were added in the 1960s.[6] Following the introduction of Care in the Community in the early 1980s the hospital went into a period of decline and almost all buildings in the old hospital were closed by December 2011.[7]
The main building of the old hospital was occupied by Oakgrove Integrated College on a temporary basis from 1992[8] until the college moved into modern purpose-built accommodation in 2004.[9] It was subsequently left to decay and was badly damaged in a serious fire in March 2016.[10]
Current facilities
The following modern facilities have been established at Gransha Park, the site of the old hospital:
Grangewood Hospital, which was designed by Avanti Architects in collaboration with Kennedy Fitzgerald and built by Heron Brothers at a cost of £10.8 million, was completed in November 2012.[11][12] The 30-bed hospital provides inpatient acute mental health care services.[13]
Lakeview Hospital, which was built at a cost of £4.8 million, was completed in October 2005.[14] The 43-bed facility provides assessment and treatment for people with learning and mental health problems.[14]
Waterside Hospital, which dates back to the 1970s,[15][16] was partially refurbished in 2014.[17] The facility provides services for elderly people including dementia sufferers.[17]
