Moving on from my previous project at Denbigh I decided to take a different look at a similar site but one that is under very different circumstances. Whittingham Hospital was once the largest mental asylum in the country; during its time it had its own church, farms, railway, telephone exchange, post office, reservoir, gas works, brewery, butchers, brass band, ballroom and even an orchestra during its operation as a fully-fledged estate between 1875 and 1995. After standing derelict for just under 20 years the 147 acre estate finally fell victim to demolition in 2014 to make way for 650 new homes as part of yet another construction plan by the ruthless company that is Taylor Wimpey. As we already know, the boost of Britain's economy has resulted in many of the country's most loved abandoned sites earning a similar fate as companies like this look to demolish and develop the land for profit. Once consisting of almost 40 individual buildings, the estate here has now been reduced to rubble, leaving just five of the original structures which are to be converted into apartments thanks to Preston parish council’s admirable insistence upon preserving at least some part of the architecture on this historic site. The sheer magnitude of the land it once occupied now seems unnaturally empty, with housing developments not due to start here for at least another half decade. This was once considered an urban explorers haven, yet the remaining buildings still contain some of the best interiors I've yet come to explore.
