Daring entertainment at former private hospital (From Wharfedale Observer)
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Daring entertainment at former private hospital
4:21pm Thursday 2nd August 2012 in Across the Years
This snapshot from a bygone era shows excited families ready to set off on a trip to the seaside. Cheery youngsters and their parents posed happily for this picture taken at Otley Station in 1954. The trip to Bridlington had been organised by Otley Labour
Entertainment with a European flavour and a touch of daring was provided at Scalebor Park Hospital’s gala in 1966.
As crowds gathered to watch the dance group in traditional costume, people can also be seen enjoying the spectacle from nearby parachute regiment scaffolding.
The hospital traced its routes back to the beginning of the 20th century when it was built on the grounds of an old house at Scalebor.
Built by the former West Riding County Council, the hospital provided psychiatric care for more than 200 patients. It became a National Health Service hospital following the end of the Second World War.
When it opened, Scalebor Park was at the forefront of developments in mental health care and was a training centre for psychiatric nurses. In its heyday, the private hospital had 150 patients and extensive grounds, including tennis courts, cricket and football pitches, as well as two farms to supply fresh produce.
The hospital, which was a major employer for people in the Burley-in-Wharfedale area, closed in the 1990s, and the site is now a housing estate. The sale of the former mental health hospital provided Airedale NHS Trust with an £8 million windfall.
After a long-running saga about the use of the site, including a public inquiry, Burley Developments Limited received the go-ahead in 2000 to build 145 new homes when Shipley planning committee approv-ed the scheme.
