Whitecroft Hospital was a mental health facility near to

Gatcombe Gatcombe is a village in the civil parish of Chillerton and Gatcombe, on the Isle of Wight, England. It is located about two and a half miles south of Newport, in the centre of the island. The parish, which includes Chillerton, had a population ...

on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

, England. The clock tower is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

The hospital, which was designed by Benjamin Jacobs using a compact arrow layout, opened as the Isle of Wight County Asylum in July 1896. It became the Isle of Wight Mental Hospital in the 1920s and 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 Whitecroft Hospital in 1948. After the introduction of

Care in the Community Care in the Community (also called "Community Care" or "Domiciliary Care") is a British policy of deinstitutionalisation, treating and caring for physically and mentally disabled people in their homes rather than in an institution. Institutional ca ...

in the early 1980s, the hospital went into a period of decline and closed in 1992. The site was subsequently redeveloped for residential use as "Gatcombe Manor".

Reported Hauntings

Whitecroft Hospital, like many other locations on the Isle of Wight, is said to be haunted by a number ghosts. This includes former doctors and nurses who are said to wander around the property as if the hospital is still open for business. The former hospital is considered one of the most haunted hospitals in the country.

References

{{authority control Hospital buildings completed in 1896 Hospitals established in 1896 1896 establishments in England 1992 disestablishments in England Hospitals disestablished in 1992 Defunct hospitals in England Former psychiatric hospitals in England Hospitals on the Isle of Wight