The Knockbracken Healthcare Park is a mental health facility based on the Saintfield Road,

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. It is managed by the

Belfast Health and Social Care Trust The Belfast Health and Social Care Trust (BHSCT) is a health organisation covering Belfast, Northern Ireland. The trust is one of five new trusts which were created on 1 April 2007 by the then Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safe ...

History

The facility was commissioned to replace the old

Belfast Asylum Belfast Asylum ( ga, Tearmann Bhéal Feirste) was a psychiatric hospital on the Falls Road in Belfast, Northern Ireland. History The hospital, which was designed by Francis Johnston and William Murphy, opened as the Belfast Asylum in 1829. In an ...

on Grosvenor Road. It was decided to acquire Purdysburn House, an early 19th century house designed by Thomas Hopper for Narcissus Batt, a banker, and its extensive grounds. The new mental health facilities, known as Purdysburn Villa Colony, were designed by

George Thomas Hine George Thomas Hine FRIBA (1842–25 April 1916) was an English architect. His prolific output included new county asylums for Hertfordshire, Lincolnshire, Surrey, East Sussex and Worcestershire, as well as extensive additions to many others. Bi ...

and Tulloch and Fitzsimmons with the first four new villas being built on the eastern part of the site in 1906 and a further six villas, together with recreation hall, administration block and churches, being built in a similar location in 1913. It joined the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

as Purdysburn Hospital in 1948 and subsequently evolved to become Knockbracken Healthcare Park. Purdysburn House itself, which had been built on the western part of the site, was demolished in 1965 and

HM Prison Hydebank Wood His Majesty's Prison, Hydebank Wood (normally known as just Hydebank) is a women's prison located in South Belfast. Young male offenders A young offenders centre (YOC) holding young male prisoners is located on the same site. The YOC houses y ...

was built in that location in 1979.Reeves-Smyth and Smith, p. 13

References

{{authority control Belfast Health and Social Care Trust Health and Social Care (Northern Ireland) hospitals Hospital buildings completed in 1929 Hospitals in Belfast 1829 establishments in Ireland Maternity hospitals in the United Kingdom