Medical dates:

Medical character:

At the outbreak of WW1 Lady Hillingdon (1857-1940) offered Westcombe Lodge for use as an auxiliary hospital.  The 2-storey property had extensive grounds and was being used as a convalescent home for babies.

The Hillingdon V.A.D. Hospital opened on 16th October 1914.  It was affiliated to the Royal Herbert Hospital in Woolwich and staffed by  1 trained Sister and 32 members of the Middlesex/2 Voluntary Aid Detachment who had been mobilised shortly before.

The Hospital was well equipped, with local residents donating bed linen and other items.  It had 25 beds in five large wards overlooking the gardens.  An operating theatre had been installed.

A Recreation tent was erected on the lawn, where the patients could relax, entertain their visitors, write letters, play cards, etc.

The Hospital closed in 1919.


Present status (December 2011)

The building has been demolished and the site now contains Westcombe Lodge Drive, a complex of 44 warden-controlled sheltered apartments for older people, which was built in 1989.  The development is managed by the Network Stadium Housing Association.