Wanstead Hospital was a former

NHS 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 " ...

hospital situated on Hermon Hill in

Snaresbrook Snaresbrook is a district of East London in the London Borough of Redbridge. It is located 8 miles east of Charing Cross. The name derives from a corruption of Sayers brook, a tributary of the River Roding that flows through Wanstead to the Ea ...

, not far from

Wanstead Wanstead () is a town in East London, England, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It borders South Woodford to the north, Redbridge, London, Redbridge to the east and Forest Gate to the south, with Leytonstone and Walthamstow to the west. It is ...

in north-east

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

History

The building was originally constructed to accommodate the Merchant Seamans' Orphan Asylum and was opened by Prince Albert in 1861. A chapel was added in 1863. The orphans moved to

Bearwood House Bearwood or Bear Wood, Sindlesham, Berkshire, England is a Victorian country house built for John Walter, the owner of ''The Times''. The architect was Robert Kerr and the house was constructed between 1865 and 1874. The family fortune had bee ...

Wokingham Wokingham is a market town in Berkshire, England, west of London, southeast of Reading, north of Camberley and west of Bracknell. History Wokingham means 'Wocca's people's home'. Wocca was apparently a Saxon chieftain who may als ...

and the orphan asylum became a convent in 1921. The building was taken over by

Essex County Council Essex County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Essex in England. It has 75 councillors, elected from 70 divisions, and is currently controlled by the Conservative Party. The council meets at County Hall ...

and converted to use as a hospital in 1938. 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 " ...

in 1948 but, after services were transferred to

Whipps Cross Hospital Whipps Cross University Hospital is a large university hospital in the locality of Whipps Cross in Leytonstone and is within Epping Forest in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, London, England. It is managed by Barts Health NHS Trust. Histo ...

, closed in 1986. The majority of the building was gutted internally and converted into apartments. The hospital's old chapel lay empty until 1995 it was purchased by what was then the Buckhurst Hill Reform Synagogue. The building was refurbished to a high standard and is now the

Sukkat Shalom Reform Synagogue Sukkat Shalom Reform Synagogue, a member of the Movement for Reform Judaism, is a Reform Jewish community based in Wanstead in the London Borough of Redbridge. Its rabbi (since 2021) is Rabbi Tali Artman Partock. The synagogue is housed in the ...

. The exterior of the hospital was used for the opening credits of the

Doctor in the House ''Doctor in the House'' is a 1954 British comedy film directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty Box. The screenplay, by Nicholas Phipps, Richard Gordon and Ronald Wilkinson, is based on the 1952 novel by Gordon, and follows a group of st ...

comedy series produced by

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 unt ...

from 1969.

History

See also

References

Further reading