The vacant former Hesketh Centre mental health hospital in Southport is due to be put up for auction.
The landmark building on Albert Road, near Hesketh Park, has been empty and boarded up since all of the remaining outpatient services there were transferred to the brand new state of the art Hartley Hospital on Curzon Road from 11 December, 2020.
The new hospital cost £21 million to build and provides services including: Old Age Psychiatry, Inpatient and Community Mental Health Team, Social Work Services and an Adult mental health inpatient service.
The Hesketh Centre has been up for sale but no firm interest has as yet been forthcoming.
Before it served as a hospital, the site was once home to one of the North West’s most stylish ‘hydro’ hotels.
A spokesperson for Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust said:
“Mersey Care’s services at the Hesketh Centre have all transferred to the new Hartley Hospital.
“In these circumstances, surplus premises like this are offered to the local health system but as no interest was forthcoming, we followed due process and offered it on the open market.
“As no appropriate offers were received, we intend to auction the building.
“We very much regret that the land adjacent to the site is now occupied by intruders and we are working with the appropriate authorities to resolve the current situation as quickly and safely as possible.”
The new Hartley Hospital on Curzon Road brings together Southport’s mental health inpatient care on one site for the first time in years and has two 20-bed wards.
Local people are now wondering what the future holds for the Hesketh Centre, which was once one of the most stunning ‘hydro’ hotels in the region.
The Victorian era ‘Hesketh park Hydro’ was described as ‘Southport’s Premier Hydro’, being the ‘most comfortable home’ for residents, visitors and patients.
The baths there comprised: chemical, brine, sulphur, vapour, sitz, douche, needle, slipper and electrical, with a certificated masseuse on-site.
Guests could also enjoy table d’hote and ‘unequalled cuisine’, with facilities including: a spacious new smoking room, drawing room, lounge, recreation room, billiards room, writing and reading room, private sitting rooms, sunny bedrooms with hot and cold water, shady gardens and two tennis courts. The facility was just a few minutes’ walk from two golf links.
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