1908 | Royal Commission on the Care and Control of the Feeble-Minded concluded that learning disability was an inherited condition but rejected sterilisation, though this had been argued for by some witnesses who were called. Instead, the idea of protection in specialised institutions or by a guardian in the community was proposed |
1910 | James Lappin born |
1913 | Mental Deficiency Act (England and Scotland) made it a duty for local education authorities to identify all children with learning disabilities between the ages of seven and sixteen. It established four categories of ‘mental deficiency?: ‘idiots?, ‘imbeciles?, ‘feeble-minded persons? and ‘moral imbeciles?. The Act also required local authorities to provide accommodation for people identified as needing care and support |
1914?1918 | First World War |
1915 | Colin Sproul born |
1925 | James Lappin goes into the Royal Scottish National Institution at Larbert |
1927 | Mental Deficiency Act responded to concern about non-institutional provision. It led to an increase in occupational centres and focused more on supervision than on segregation of ‘mental defectives? |
1927 | Glasgow Parish Council buys Lennox Castle and its estate with plans to convert it into an institution for ‘the mentally handicapped? |
1929 | Report of the Mental Deficiency Committee (Wood Committee) argued for more use of varied forms of community care |
1929 | Building work at Lennox Castle began |
1936 | ‘Lennox Castle Certified Institution for Mental Defectives? was opened by the Lord Provost of Glasgow |
1937 | Colin Sproul joins the staff at Lennox Castle Hospital |
1939 | Colin Sproul qualifies as a mental deficiency nurse |
1939?1945 | Second World War |
1941 | Maternity unit opened (closed 1964) |
1942 | Colin marries and moves onto ‘The Oval? ? quarters for staff at the hospital |
1945 | Election of Labour Government |
1946 | National Health Service Act |
1948 | Lennox Castle Hospital placed under the National Health Service (NHS) |
1952 | The drug Chlorpromazine (Largactil) introduced |
1952 | Margaret Scally born |
1952 | Howard Mitchell born at Lennox Castle |
1954 | Scottish Society for the Mentally Handicapped set up by five parents |
1955?1978 | Allan Williamson living with his parents in staff quarters at Lennox Castle Hospital |
1960s?late | End of employment of patients as domestics on the wards at Lennox Castle |
1967 | Ely report identified cruelty and cover-up at the Ely mental hospital in Cardiff; first of several similar inquiries at Farleigh, Whittingham, South Ockenden and Normansfield, which took place over a decade |
1970s | Total number of beds at Lennox Castle Hospital 1620 |
1970 | Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act required local authorities to provide services for disabled people in the home and in the community |
1970 | Education Act ended classification of some children as ineducable and gave children in health authority special care units the right to education |
1970 | Lesley Learmonth born |
1971 | Better Services for the Mentally Handicapped White Paper issued by the Department of Health |
1972 | ‘Our Life?, the first national conference of people with learning disabilities |
1974 | Lennox Castle Hospital placed in the Northern District of the Greater Glasgow Health Board |
1975 | Colin Sproul retires |
1975?1979 | Allan Williamson worked at Lennox Castle |
1975?1980 | Howard Mitchell worked at Lennox Castle |
1979 | Election of Conservative Government |
1979 | Committee of Enquiry into Mental Handicap Nursing and Care (the Jay Committee) stressed the importance of individual care rather than groups or classes of care |
1981 | Education Act placed a duty on local education authorities to educate disabled children in mainstream schools; the Act came into force in 1983 |
1982 | Allan Williamson worked as community nurse ? learning disabilities |
1982 | Key Housing Association founded |
1988 | Residential Care: a Positive Choice (Wagner Report) did not extend officially to Scotland |
1990s | Beginning of resettlement of residents of Lennox Castle Hospital |
1990 | National Health Service and Community Care Act (included Scotland) began the move away from institutional care towards independent life in the community |
1990 | Howard Mitchell began his research |
1991 | Margaret Scally left Lennox Castle |
1991 | Total number of beds at Lennox Castle Hospital 830 |
1993 | Lennox Castle Hospital becomes part of the Greater Glasgow Community and Mental Health Services NHS trust |
1993 | Scottish Society for the Mentally Handicapped changes its name to ENABLE Scotland |
1995 | Allan Williamson joined Key Housing as project officer |
1995 | Carers (Recognition and Services) Act |
1996 | Community Care (Direct Payments) Act |
1997 | Election of Labour Government |
1998 | Greater Glasgow Health Board seeks approval to close the hospital by 2002 |
1998 | Jimmy Lappin left Lennox Castle |
2001 | Lennox Castle Hospital partially closed. Total number of beds reduced to 139 |
2001 | ‘Valuing People: a new strategy for learning disability in the 21st century? White Paper issued by the Department of Health |
2002 | Lennox Castle Hospital closes |
2003 | Allan Williamson promoted to Regional Manager at Key Housing |
2003?2004 | All of the former hospital building is demolished |
2004 | Lesley Learmonth moves into her own flat |
2006 | Planning permission given for the former hospital site to be developed as a sports academy and training facility for Glasgow Celtic Football Club and for a housing development to be built in another part of what had been the hospital?s grounds |
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