History:
The 300-acre site housed some 2000*patients*and was based on the "Echelon plan" - a specific arrangement of wards, offices and services within easy reach of each other by a network of interconnecting corridors. This meant that staff were able to operate around the site without the need to go outside in bad weather. Unlike modern British hospitals, patients in Severalls were separated according to their gender. Villas were constructed around the main hospital building as accommodation blocks between 1910 and 1935.*The hospital closed as a psychiatric hospital in the early 1990s following the closure of other psychiatric institutions. However, a small section remained open until 20 March 1997 for the treatment of elderly patients suffering from the effects of serious stroke, etc., as a temporary building for nearby*Colchester General Hospital*which was in the process of building an entire new building for these patients. A few of the satellite villas as of 2013 are still operational as research facilities on the edge of the site.
Explore:
Visited this one with a couple of non members, and we were on the road by 4am, and with a surprisingly reasonable maccies breakfast we made it just as dawn was beginning to break. we made it over the dreaded palisade, the only casualty being a coke can which made my mate look like he'd pissed himself haha. once in, we spent hours mooching around the place at our own leisure, but unfortunately no sign of michael - was looking forward to meeting him! we were almost finished shooting before a certain someone dropped their camera and ruined a wide angle, but hey - live and learn
hit a few more locations before a dreadful drive home, with another maccies stop - just about made it bearable
Quite a long one - i know, my apologies but it was my first time here and it's such a beautiful place!
Anyway, thanks for looking!
The 300-acre site housed some 2000*patients*and was based on the "Echelon plan" - a specific arrangement of wards, offices and services within easy reach of each other by a network of interconnecting corridors. This meant that staff were able to operate around the site without the need to go outside in bad weather. Unlike modern British hospitals, patients in Severalls were separated according to their gender. Villas were constructed around the main hospital building as accommodation blocks between 1910 and 1935.*The hospital closed as a psychiatric hospital in the early 1990s following the closure of other psychiatric institutions. However, a small section remained open until 20 March 1997 for the treatment of elderly patients suffering from the effects of serious stroke, etc., as a temporary building for nearby*Colchester General Hospital*which was in the process of building an entire new building for these patients. A few of the satellite villas as of 2013 are still operational as research facilities on the edge of the site.
Explore:
Visited this one with a couple of non members, and we were on the road by 4am, and with a surprisingly reasonable maccies breakfast we made it just as dawn was beginning to break. we made it over the dreaded palisade, the only casualty being a coke can which made my mate look like he'd pissed himself haha. once in, we spent hours mooching around the place at our own leisure, but unfortunately no sign of michael - was looking forward to meeting him! we were almost finished shooting before a certain someone dropped their camera and ruined a wide angle, but hey - live and learn
hit a few more locations before a dreadful drive home, with another maccies stop - just about made it bearable
Quite a long one - i know, my apologies but it was my first time here and it's such a beautiful place!
Anyway, thanks for looking!
Good splore, you succeeded where we failed 
