Stanley Royd, Former Pauper Lunatic Asylum Wakefield

[@MotherofImps]

Thank you for this. My father (now in his 70's) trained here back in the early 1960's...in fact it was while he was here that he met my mother, who was training at Pinderfields. It was so cool to be able to see the place my dad spent so much time...and as it was at the time that he was there, too.

[@kathy7613]

Thank you for sharing this

[@SirAdamUK]

Brilliant video. I work at Pinderfields and often go for a walk around the old Stanley Royd site on a lunch time. I'm not sure i'd want to live in flats/apartments that were once part of an asylum. Every time I walk round, I think of what happened there, fantastic local history, whatever happened.

[@christinefilas9392]

I think it would be awesome to live in an apartment that has such history. No such opportunity here in the states.

[@marys8626]

My great grandad lived here for 30+ years. He lost his wife and baby son within 6 weeks of each other and he had a nervous breakdown. They took his other two children away and gave them to foster parents (luckily loving ones). He died there eventually. It is heartbreaking that now he'd be given tablets and therapy. Instead, he received a 30 odd year sentence. My grandad visited him often as an adult and took his grandchildren to see him. Very sad story.

[@markferguson3917]

Sorry to hear that.

[@angelblue7779]

I have to say this looks like one of the nicer hospitals of this type. Very clean and the patients looks well cared for. It even looked nicer as compared to some nursing homes I have seen as of today's standards. I was actually surprised while watching this video, not what I'd expected.

[@alextilson]

never thought the former stanley royd asylum would ever appear on youtube. My grandmother worked at the asylum from 1930 to 1987 and if she was still alive now she would have loved to have watched this video, (she was called Phillis Darker and started working there as a nurse in the 30's and worked her way up to been a matron before she retired) She used to talk about it in depth the good side and bad side of it, in the early days and she loved it more when the refurbishment

[@christinemay5459]

I was a student nurse in the hospital in the early 60's, the film brought back many memories for me, I made some good friends there, lifelong friends.It was a hard job, but rewarding especially if we were able to let a patient go home after weeks, sometimes months of treatment.The only thing I hated was when we had to attend ECT clinic's where the patients had electric shocks given directly to their brains, looking back to me it was barbaric.I left before my 'finals' due to personal issues, wish now I had stayed on and hopefully passed my RMN.

[@stevenhulbert7540]

Thank you for your service and commitment, anyplace like an asylum can be challenging mentally and physically.

[@stevenhulbert7540]

Thank you for showing this film footage on 16mm. It looks very nice compared to the places I've seen over the years from the past. The patients seemed well cared for and there were treatments that boggled the mind, thanks for showing the historical building.

[@larryanders4447]

From all the footage I have seen from asylum. This one looks so clean and organized

[@Ramsx99]

Brilliant video, such a shame it had to be pulled down, I would of loved to take some photography there, a rare treat. I spoke to a guy who used to work there, and towards the end of it's days as a working hospital it had a chamber of underground rooms, apparantley they found various items within Stanley Royd and donated most of them to the Wakefield museum. Great Footage, black and white always gives a mood to the film also the music choice is excellent. Well Done! Rams

[@mashamorgan]

Care in the community certainly hasnt been the answer to these poor peoples problems and in a lot of cases they seem to be worse off, ridiculed, lonely and lacking in the most basic care. Thatcher didnt close the asylums for the benefit of the patient's thats for sure !

[@alextilson5809]

I totally agree with your comment, but sadly the do gooders and the PC brigade would have kicked off hugly if they were still open, but would they have helped, I very much doubt it, as they are all for independance but dont want to help

[@JayEey]

My Mum used to work there during the 80's and early 90's. Its a crime that the place was torn down. It should have been made into a museum.

[@4SCARECROWS]

This was very good!! Professional quality in my opinion. The music is right for this footage. The footage was very good as it captured a slice of time and this place.

[@sharijotershin1262]

So incredibly sad....

[@kingnrj]

Very nice! nicely put together

[@lisachloeadi]

I worked at the Royd from 1989-1994 & loved it. My Great, Great Grandmother was to be shoved in the Royd in 1897 - this was her punishment for being an un-married mother! Anyway, the poor woman comitted suicide in 1900. If those rules were still in place today Stanley Royd would be full of un-married mothers & women with post natal depression - that was another reason why some women were put in Stanley Royd! Working there, I met some lovely "sane" people who didn't deserve to be in there!

[@alextilson]

@sazdaz my grandmother was a matron at the stanley royd hospital, and loves this video (she is 94) and she has mentioned that there was no such thing as MSRA in the hospitals at that time, as the wards were always cleaned with bleach and water by the hospital orderly's and there work was daily checked by the ward sisters, Stanley Royd may look austeer but is was a living community untill the day it closed and the wards were bright and clean with lovley garden's outdoors, and its own chapple

[@Clleonie]

Thank you for compiling these pictures and the footage. Very rare and mportant indeed.

[@ladyplim17]

IWhat a fantastic piece of footage, you can see the soul in the place...treasure it x

[@gloworm353]

Such precious footage, amazing vid! *****

[@mariaemmanouil8389]

my first flat in uk was up there...thank you for sharing...despite the past/history of this building i've kept some great memories and moments during my accommodation there on 2016!!! ❤❤

[@mashamorgan]

Am I for real? I merely stated some of the feedback from some of my former patients. Obviously many have thrived in the community but on the other hand many havent. Believe me many struggle in the Community, I see it daily, Do you believe Thatcher closed the asylums because she felt care in the community was the better option for patients welfare? This initiative was all about kicking the patients out and selling the land and buildings off as prime real estate !

[@alisonbrowning9620]

exactly, I used to work in a hospital for people with learning disabilities or mental handicap as it was called, it was not ideal and there were some nasty staff but likewise in the group homes there were unpleasant staff and disempowering attitudes, residents often missed popping down the WRVS canteen or going round wards visiting mates and going to the Gateway club without needing staff to assist or drive them or escort them, they had work in OT department and enjoyed it, now many are stuck on their own in council flats, no employment, maybe a couple of clubs but they have to have an escort, difficulty finding a social worker for the more able, and more profoundly handicapped or low grade as they were called in the old days just in small group homes, no day center to go to as they got closed and maybe taken for a couple of trips to a cafe.There are some super success stories yes but my own cousin killed herself when told that she must move in to the community, put in at 14 with proably Aspergers like me but called Schizophrenic then and then at 45 expected to move out, she jumped off a fire escape, community care works if there is thought put into it and not just ahh lets close the nut houses and put everyone in the communtiy to save money really and yet look at the prisons and numbers of mentally ill people or learning disabled people festering there and the homeless and people who turn to drink out of desperation and being left to get on with it.

[@andyhughes5885]

Exactly !

[@terrielouisemisell8237]

You forget the torture that went on in those places and the reason people were sent there. My opinion Thatcher made a Humane decision. We're all entitled to our opinions.

[@leishiahines7224]

I worked and trained here from 1977 to 1984. Although in 2015 the video paints a grim picture, the reality was very different. The "patients" were cared for and regarded with affection, they were part of a large, albeit neglected family and within the hospital community they all had their own value. "Care in the Community" closed these large institutions arguing that everyone had the right to exist independently, the reality was that many were mentally unable to do so. Asylum means "Place of Safety" and these "Asylums" were just that. Government Policy, the desire to economise meant that "Places of Safety" no longer exist.

[@agentfungus9742]

Leishia Hines : When these asylums were shut down, many mentally ill became the homeless and jail inmates. Some are unable to handle "freedom" because their mental illness will always imprison them.

[@raydodge4121]

Leishia Hines excellent post

[@sillysam182002uk]

My dad was a resident here in the late 70s. He's says your lying.

[@paulevans2891]

Couldn't agree more,worked 6 yesrs at Stanley royd. Good and bad staff,difficult and different times,not a easy job,physically and mentally,I was 18 when started,eventually moving to many local places,and further afield. In nhs,hmp and private sector,was a community at srh and mostly well cared for and looked after.

[@Nevers0ft]

I for one don't mind it... I live in one of the renovated apartments - luckily, I'm yet to hear anything go "bump" in the night but I wont be having any seances just in case ;-)

[@azerberjankey]

Good Film. Bless you for posting this.

[@christhornley1664]

Very moving and atmospheric video!! And the choice of accompanying music couldn't be better! One of my favourite youtube vids!

[@lisachloeadi]

Funnily enough, the "tree block" as it was called (almond, Beech, Cedar, Daphne, Elm, Fern, Gause, Hazel, Ivy, Juniper) had some stairs which seemed very spooky! Also, the ward above Tuke (Wright) seemsd spooked too, I think the most spooky place was the around the kitchens & the coridoor that ran around the kitchens - we'd hear foot steps & mumbling - no one was ever there! The hospital also had some underground tunnels that lead to Wakefield cathedral.

[@kflakita14]

totally agree now is a shame!

[@dalesman4]

Thank you, Mark. I believe my Nanna was a nurse (more likely, the then equivalent of a care assistant) there, probably 1930s or 40s. Our school cross country course took us up the cut beside the hospital and we'd often see patients wandering the grounds. Many were, plainly, disturbed. I think the jury's still out on the case of in-patient care v care in the community. Would you mind if I linked this to my Family tree at my Nanna's entry? Cheers, Chris.

[@wildmom67]

I know how you feel. My mother was in one for a nervous break down. I was about 5 yrs old and had so much anger towards her, for what happen. Of course I was only 5 and did not understand it was not her fault. She hated it where she was.

[@stealthpiccasso]

I have now uploaded a revised version of this video with footage from the early nineties.

[@charlykittykat]

Excellent! Does anyone have any info on the old Oulton Hall asylum in South Leeds?

[@eohinyorks]

How spotlessly clean everything is.

[@dreamw0rx]

well done GOOD SHOW!! good work once again

[@Phutlikka]

i can't imagine anything more terrifying than losing your mind and going mad. just the thought of it scares the hell out of me.

[@geofbarker6694]

Maybe you are insane, you just don't know it !!Sometimes I think I've already died and have come back as if nothing had happened.

[@Phutlikka]

+Geof Barker its strange you suggest that, as ive often had similar feelings! Good call friend.

[@Lisa19688]

thanks for sharing

[@helenmilhinch9803]

Whilst very institutional by today's standards, these places were a God send for those in need. I'm so saddened that there are so few Dementia specialist homes in the UK today.

[@4625robbo693]

I like how they have now made this in to flats next to a hospital

[@bananafish6726]

The old Colney Hatch Asylum in what is now the London borough of Barnet was closed in the '90s, and and the building was converted into luxury flats called Princess Park Manor. Almost 300 patients who let go into the streets, more or less. I hope those bloody flats are haunted.

[@chazfensk]

Amazing! Thanks for posting!

[@dalesman4]

Many thanks for this. As a schoolboy I'd often have to pass the hospital and would see in-patients in the grounds; a little scary in the ignorance of a boy. My Grandmother worked there as an assistant carer (in modern parlance) in the 40s. Thank you for posting.

[@sneezymonkey]

Look how clean it was... it puts todays hospitals to shame!

[@cockaheuck1534]

That last sentence broke my heart. About the year 2003

[@cockaheuck1534]

Now if it would stop time in the 1960s. I say it would be so cool & none of the woman caretakers would age

[@fearlessmudfan]

for once wakefield council didn't enforce demolition on an old building, most of Stanley Royd is now apartments. thanks for posting this, being a wakefield lass its a building i have gone past many many times but have never had cause to even venture onto the grounds.

[@ebrach121]

These pictures are gorgous! And LOVE the music :)

[@cockaheuck1534]

Love the environment. I love those big institutional buildings. But most of all. Those women caretakers.

[@simapark]

I lived on Eastmoor Road, and as a kid, all us local urchins used to find gaps in the green metal spiked fence and then play football on the grounds of the asylum. The Police used to chase us off but could never catch us as we could squeeze through the fence, but they were too fat to do so. We often invited the 'patients' to join our games . It was sad that they were given clothes and had haircuts that made them stand out as patients. If you walk down Eastmoor Road the origional metal spiked fence is still there. Another story is the church and its 'haunted' crypt that stood in the grounds just opposite Eastmoor post office . It burned down in mysterious circumstances . Rumour it was torched to make way for those flats that stand there now on the junction of Eastmoor Road and Stanley Road.

[@MegaSbrown123]

it is so spooky watching this footage knowing that my friend lives in one of the flats that is has been converted too now. much respect for posting this video. do you have any other footage of wakefield cos i would like to see? iv never seen footage of my home city this rare before. thanks.

[@marktwain380]

Superb choice of music! Wistful, sad, disturbing but spiritual too

[@nairda-cu1zp]

What they did do was to contain many of the people who now wonder aimlessly round the town, getting arrested and causing annoyance to all concerned. My Great Grandfather was the farm manager on the land between Stanley Royd and Coach Road Outwood. They grew all their own vegetables and many inmates spent a happy and carefree life there assured that they were warm, fed and cared for -- unlike today.

[@mashamorgan]

I agree with all you said, Care in the Community is a disgrace born out of greed not care !

[@licksnkicks]

nairda1945 For the most part they didn't have a carefree life. Yes they were let outside to perform manual labor chores or working inside of the asylum. Most were medicated with alcohol, opium etc. and a lot of them were treated with disdain and indifference. They were restrained in many fashions! Bed restraints, wooden cribs, straight jackets. They had experimental procedures performed on them. Insulin comas, LSD, cold/hot water baths for hours on end! Lobotomies were the treatment that soon became favored. It was absolutely barbaric. The frontal lobes of your brain were severed causing severe damage to the nerves, blood vessels and brain etc. They were warm? Not bloody likely. It was a part of the treatment to endure ice cold temperatures in these places. Treatment today is more humane but not much more than that!

[@ilTroubadori]

nairda1945 so true 😐

[@alextilson5809]

That's how it was done back then, the medical staff thought it was the right thing to do regarding treatment, something which we think as poor medical care in today's life. My Grandmother worked there as a nurse in the 1950's right upto 1980''s and she enjoyed working there, A surgical lobotomy and ECT was regular performed on patients with psychological issues as barbaric this was it is still used today but with tablets and ECT is still done but under general anesthetic. Social rehabilitation was also a key part of Stanley Royd also, It was a huge hospital in its day and there was many activities patients could participate in, Many patients old people who were housed in Stanley Royd find it hard to settle in to life as they do not have the security and care which they were used to, and this is putting a drain on social care now. The goverments mistake was close the mental hospitals as care was condensed into one unit rarther than having patients scatted about the area.

[@AnthonyHandcock]

I've been a patient modern psychiatric units and despite caring staff and modern facilities they're still bad enough. I'm eternally glad that I will never end up in one of these Victorian hell holes. The closure of the large asylums was a good move... Shame they didn't and don't properly fund the modern units and care in the community that replaced it. "A surgical lobotomy and ECT was regular performed on patients with psychological issues as barbaric this was it is still used today but with tablets and ECT is still done but under general anesthetic." You can't compare modern psychotropic medicine with lobotomies... That's just plain stupid and quite insulting. I take a heavy cocktail of meds and I can assure you I'm not even close to be 'lobotomised'. As for ECT... I have an advance directive on my notes saying I am not to be given ECT under any circumstances and that directive has to be obeyed.

[@stealthpiccasso]

Society, their values and morals over the 170 years of history attached to the former "West Riding Pauper Lunatic Asylum, Wakefield" were to blame for sending people into a liftime of institutional care, in some cases without foundation in todays terms. The staff At Stanley Royd recieved these people and gave them care and compassion as much as the resources and hospital management would allow.

[@Laurisa718]

Ye Gods... how this touches my soul... you will never know. Thank you... dear friend.

[@Glamrockqueen]

I currently work at a psychiatric hospital in Stafford. The original hospital closed around 1996,it was a totally gorgeous building,not unlike Stanley Royd,possibly built around the same time? Sadly time,vandals and total neglect have left the once majestic building a tatty wrecked shell of what it once was,shame. Ty Stealth v.good video

[@Papa_Kilo]

what a fascinating film!

[@sleepyjessie]

So, those flats by the park is where it used to be? I knew I recognised that clock tower. How much of what is currently there is original?

[@Serielle]

I wonder what classed someone as clinically insane during the 60's ? The treatments where quite scary during that time !! This reminds me of the advancements we've made in Medicine ! And a thankful advancement for that !

[@kflakita14]

wow this video is amazing thumbs up!

[@grettagrids]

@DeeDee1957 a hanful of asylums( now called state hospitals) are still in operation... such as the one in chattahoochee FL. but they treat residents better now then they used to. I fear ending up in chattahoochee just becuz I am near crippled with Lupus and can no longer care for myself( I live with my mother who cares for me)

[@Patrick-qc4zy]

Hi can somebody tell me where I would find the personal report of an ancestor in here please ?

[@paulevans105]

worked here from 1978 to 1984/85 the patients had a day hospital shop and big hall where dances etc took place.Yes not a nice place in many ways but some patients were left there by desperate motheres or families.Majority it was home,staff again majority were good with a few bad apples,But on the whole cared for reasonably well,was busy and could be a very hard place to work.Treatment etc have moved on,but in some ways not for the better,there was more for patients to do

[@ladyplim17]

It brings a tear to my eyes, U can see it had a soul, Excellent find :)

[@sleepyjessie]

@alextilson Amazing, thanks for letting me know! I knew at least some of the buildings were still the originals but not all! I had a friend who lived in one of the flats, they showed me the basement, scary stuff!

[@mrslorrainemorgan]

I work at Fieldhead Hospital and have visited the museum there which has loads of interesting artefacts from Stanley Royd. I'd encourage anyone with an interest to go. Can't remember opening times (once a week I think) so ring Fieldhead first to check.

[@AnthonyDayrrTV]

yea stealth where can we see the music selection youtube provides?????

[@givingbirthiseasy]

Isn't there something similar on Batman? I knew Wakefield was no Featherstone but this is crazy!

[@Jay-S730]

this is about 2 minutes from my house never even knew it was an asylum!!

[@nokomarie1963]

That was very interesting. How could one care for patients in beds so close together? Imagine the smell! Also, I doubt very much that the little dining room with those sharp-edged tables and GLASS vases with FLOWERS was a regular patient dining room. You would have glass all over the floor and every flower eaten by some old dear within a matter of days.

[@sebastianave]

@anewunderstanding The song is Mr. Meeble - Forget This Ever Happened.

[@lisachloeadi]

@davidwlc Those wards weren't there when I workedat Stanley Royd?

[@vgoth100]

Nice footage and great music choice. That pic of the dining hall at the beginning was amazing - what a grand room. In the states (Michigan) close to where my parents grew up was a Kirkbride building asylum - my grandmother worked there for a time. They tore it down (people did try to protest) in the 90s....a shame, it was a gorgeous building. Now all that's there is condos...wonder if those people know they may be living on the bones of the 'inmates' buried there?

[@tmac3771]

Patients.

[@mashamorgan]

These places had a bad reputation but I've spoken to some old patients who wish they still lived in the old asylums as they believe compared to 'Care in the Community' it was the lesser of the two evils.

[@stealthpiccasso]

You are right the music has changed, you tube decided to block the video due to copyright, so I had to pick one of their free tracks.. not happy...

[@ken6x]

@anewunderstanding James Blunt - I Can't Hear the Music

[@MrTaxpayer11]

Hell I suffer from major depressive disorder and would love to be locked up in a clean place like that where they serve you tea. Hello Docs are you listening? Give me meds that don't work and expect me to function. Just give me a bunch of novels and tea and a bed and I will sign myself in.

[@kerryhart9418]

Would you have also wanted a labotomy?

[@leesaunders1930]

@@kerryhart9418 well said lol

[@1401JSC]

All closed? Replaced by what? Funny how bathplugs seem to disappear all on their own. The wallpaper at 5:00 would send me crazy too. I sang christmas carols in their chapel full of patients in around 1962. The 1960s footage seems quite up to date. Prison-factory architecture though (without the bars on the windows).

[@DharmaDogs40]

amazing

[@megabadass30]

where is this place? i mean less sepcifically than wakefield. i'm from Boston Massachusetts and there's a town named wakefield not far from here, but i saw mention of "parliment" in the video, so i'm guessing it's not this wakefield

[@roor06]

I take back my initial responce ... You are quite correct that staff had only good intentions ... Respect ...

[@yasminelauren]

does anyone know this song

[@stealthpiccasso]

ee my "Out Of Sight" Collection of videos. A remarkable insight into peoples lost lives within this system. Footage of stanley Royd, Storthes Hall, Stoke Park Colony, Brockall and Carstairs. A Documentary about the introduction of the Community Care Act in April 1993 and the closure of many of Britain's older mental hospitals.

[@Kiyoko504]

They need to bring Asylums back their are way to many crazy people on the outside yes I know they have Psyche Words in hospitals but its not enough

[@dizzylizzy111]

just been looking at this video as I work with adults with learning disabillities up in Scotland but used to live near wakefield my sister was a nurse on Oak/Pine ward and used to take me to work with her also to the christmas parties

[@leggiepoo]

My friend just told me that they staff and builders of stanley royd built tunnels underneath the plantation and roads next to stanley royd and leading to wakefield cathedral. I was just wondering if anyone knows if this is true? i did just read about corpse way. But i wondered whether they did build a road underneath where they couldcarry the dead for their blessings? if anyone could help that would be ace i have just been sat in the grounds of stanley royd at 2:00am scared out of my mind :S

[@Glamrockqueen]

Just look how clean everywhere is. You can't say that about a lot of hospitals these days.

[@MrTopoftree]

My grandmother died here in 1935, do you know what may have become of her remains or where inmates may have been buried; or more sadly cremated?

[@tmac3771]

Patients

[@whitewolf200]

does anyone know of other old flims showing the asylum and footages of real patients? and doc. or something?

[@maxxlindley9425]

the humanity ...the kind acts of care...it's gone...How can that be right?

[@hausjellp]

great video :) good work

[@garydolman2904]

The Victorian insane asylums were, by and large, a great step forward in the treatment of mental disorders. The West Riding Pauper lunatic asylums in particular benefitted from association with some of the great psychiatrists of the age, notably Sir James Crichton-Browne.

[@mestevieboy]

...when the Royd was laying empty after closure, and before redevelopment, my mate went in and had a look around. He found some artwork - paintings - that had been 'hidden' - definately hidden, he said. Why were they hidden? Will have to speak further with him on this.

[@lilalleylov16]

crazy that since i was five ive always wanted to work in an insane asylum. i find the human body interesting. most thing i find interesting is the human mind an how it works. i wonder if sometimes crazy people actually know what they are talking about an sometimes they may not actually be the crazy one but the sane person.

[@stealthpiccasso]

Originally the music was removed by You Tube for copyright issues, I replaced it with free music supplied by You Tube and I cannot for the life of me remember what it was..

[@2001dmatu]

It's a shame I bet there were many people that were put in there that weren't supposed to be! I bet they went in normal.....but then eventually came out messed up!

[@randydelaney7804]

No one is Normal. Normal is a setting on a Washing machine. You mean Healthy and came out Mentally ill.

[@christinefilas9392]

to the "bleeding hearts" who condemn the use of asylums, I strongly disagree with your point of view. Perhaps you would have preferred those individuals running amuck in sane society but I find that option to be insane. The U.S. is a great example of what happens when you turn them loose, crime and murder on the rise.

[@alextilson]

@jbdtaylor Hi all thoes flats by the park is the origional stanley royd its a listed building so it cannot be demolised !!

[@metro33777]

Leery at first due to the huge amount of worthless trash posted on youtube. Began watching and became quite surprised. Great find and post and thanks.

[@camperluver]

Isnt it West ryder pauper lunatic asylum? Kasabian have their new album named after it.

[@leewmajor]

iam moving just near here on tuke grove in wakefield really interesting great vid

[@photopulse321]

All demolished now, and any part not demolished has been completely altered for new housing and apartment living...

[@Appypig]

I just found out 3 days ago my gg grandad died in there in 1875, I can't stop wondering why he was there as many people were sent through nothing more than depression.....I'll never know. Great film.

[@nicolametcalfe1799]

+Jago Email: [e-mail] giving his name, date of death etc and they will tell you why and when he was admitted. You can apply for his medical records as well.

[@Appypig]

+Nic Metcalfe Thanks for that Nic, I sent for his death certificate which highlighted something a little more upsetting than I expected. Nothing can change history.

[@markferguson3917]

My poor grandma ended up here in around 1962, Annie Pointon was her name. She didn't last long im afraid to say.

[@roor06]

cant help keep playing this ... gets me everytime ... I must be mad ...

[@matthewdenham7398]

No you’re not mad

[@jeanbaker2087]

This looks more like a luxury hotel than an asylum.