Two of the clock faces, bent and battered, lie discarded on the left wing of the
admin block. The fact that they've just been left here, just adds to the misery
of the front of the building.
All the windows of the left wing have, for some reason, been opened. The curtain in the
top left window fluttered, sodden in the breeze.
It looked like the fire reached the boarded up window; but it was
contained in the front hallway only, so it looks like security were a little overzealous boarding up
the other windows.
The Director Of Nursing Services occupied the ground floor rooms, whilst the Personnel
Department was upstairs.
2009: The clock faces were bent and battered. I think they were forced out of their
housings to fall to the ground below.
The clock mechanism didn’t fare well either. The thieves ripped it out, leaving pieces of intricate metalwork scattered throughout
the first floor of the Administration Block. I found some components wedged against the perimeter fence on a visit in 2005.
When English Heritage refused listing, they specifically mentioned the vandalism of the clock. It was only one of their many points,
but one wonders if a more intact Administration Block would’ve swayed their opinion.
