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Report - - Hamilton Lodge, Colchester, Essex, February 2018 | Other Sites | 28DaysLater.co.uk

Report - Hamilton Lodge, Colchester, Essex, February 2018

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Exxperious

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
Hamilton Lodge Care Home

Only my second report so i'm still learning the ropes, first report when down well so I must be doing something right. The site was a care home for people with mental disabilities particularly focusing on those with autism.

History

In summary there is very little history that I could fine apart from planning documents. Seem to a similar affair for the other two people who have posted report on this location. For those that want to know more I’ve picked a part the planning documents below.

Past information on this location seems to be as common as hen’s teeth, after trawling the interwebs I managed to scrape a bit together regarding planning applications but not a whole lot more. The earliest record of the building existence is 1999 however I imagine it was built well before that. Ever since the first planning application it seems there has been a desire to develop new builds surrounding Selbourne Court that sits at the rear of the site. The very first application was for three new building split in to 5 units holding 8 people each. This was fully approved however it doesn’t appear they were actually built. They may have been built and then demolished however this is just speculation due to the lack of history records. the image on the right was a drawing of the site in 1999, the left image being the proposed development

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The next planning application wasn’t made until 2005, following suit, the development focused around the back of the property. In this case it looked at extending Selbourne Court instead of building new. Again, the planning application as approved but no building to show. At this point in time is was owned by the Hamilton Lodge Trust Limited

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Between 2005 and 2007, the site was acquired by The Disabilities Trust. The company then put in several planning application for the new builds which exist currently. Similar to previous applications, the application detailed four separate building housing a number of service users. The building in red are still yet to be built.

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After running out of planning applications, the only source of history I could find was the closure announcement. In short, the lodge was too far away from any major town and with public transport being infrequent it wasn’t practical to travel. For people in this type of care Independence and social integration is essential as so living in the country side doesn’t provide much opportunity for either. Along with this, there is also a new drive to separate people in this type of care; living more like individuals rather than caring for one massive group where unique need cannot be met. This is illustrated with the consistent planning application to build multiple smaller housing quarters. Coupled with what was previously mentioned, funding also played a part in it closure, mind you, when doesn’t funding play a part?

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References
https://idox.tendringdc.gov.uk/onli...o?activeTab=relatedCases&keyVal=LTQDBYQB03B00
(Planning Applications)
https://www.thedtgroup.org/autism-and-learning-disabilities/news/hamilton-lodge-to-close
(Closure notice)

Future Development
Without actual documentation its only speculation, however, judging by the state of the lodge I should imagine it would be torn down. No evidence of it being a listed build which could stop such action. I would assume the new building at the rear would stay however I doubt more of the same would be built due to the rural location which caused the closure in the first place.


The Explore

Research Prior to the Explore
As with any place, researching beforehand can definitely help on the day. After looking through the reports and reading the comments, I found there seemed to be some confusion around whether the lodge had PIR’s and cameras. Well to clear up the confusion, there are no cameras or sensors of any sort on or in the lodge. This doesn’t include the new builds at the back, I didn’t venture over there but then it wouldn’t be surprising if they did have cameras and sensors all over the place.

This leads me on to the next point as to whether the site is still in use. This is pretty confusing as the building at the rear are pretty new and I also saw a car parked outside. However, with no obvious access point and no people in sight I am sceptical about whether it is still used.

Summary
The explore was about a 6/10, good but not quite Severals a day after it closed. The inside is pretty trashed but still some nice bits left, lots of personal items still inside. As for access, a blind man could spot it but you wouldn’t want to be a fat lad.

Complete Account
After about six month out of the game (due to constabulary related reasons), my craving was too much and I had to go and explore. Arrived at the place and found a very convenient place to park, however, it appeared all 17 of the residents that live in Great Bromley decided to have a meeting at the town hall, right across the street. Regardless I got on with it and no one seemed to care. After reading about the cameras, sensors and even guard dogs I was understandably cautious making sure I wasn’t about to be eaten by a pug.

After realising everyone including the police and security guard (and his dog) were at the village hall meeting, I knew I had the place to myself. Anyone with a pair of legs could get in to this place, it’s a cute effort from the security team but “it’s the through that counts” doesn’t really work in this instance. Either way it meant I was in pretty easily.
Being my fist explore for a while I had been too focused on getting in to realise my nerves. So to calm myself down I decided just to sit on my phone for a bit; before doing so I decided to poke my head round the door to make sure the coast was clear. All good so a sat scrolling Facebook for a while. Then the door I had opened to check closed it self… safe to say there was almost a very brown and very wet accident. Turns out it was the wind and I hadn’t shut it properly.

Now time to explore the place. It was a bit of a maze with several stair cases leading to different parts and rooms connecting to other rooms. The upper floors were quite well lit as the windows weren’t boarded up. The same cannot be said for the lower floors which posed a few difficulties with photos. Either way I manged to explore everything, well almost everything, I decided to leave the basement as it was flooded and looked too spooky for me by myself. Spend about an hour and a half mooching around and decided to leave just before the sun set. Security guard must have still been in the meeting as there was no drama of that calibre on my way out either.

Photos
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Video Clips

As mentioned in my previous report, I stick a camera to myself to make sure I impress all the YouTube goons. Just kidding, it’s just nice to have a bit of video to show the place off, nothing fancy just raw clips chucked together. No audio.


Thanks for reading
Exxperious
 

Mps6

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
ahhh its such a shame with how trashed its got. First time i went it was untouched, no boards on windows etc. all be it entry was a fucking arse ache, its always the last place you check :banghead. surprised you haven't got any shots of the staircase, that was the main attraction for me ;)
 

Exxperious

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
ahhh its such a shame with how trashed its got. First time i went it was untouched, no boards on windows etc. all be it entry was a fucking arse ache, its always the last place you check :banghead. surprised you haven't got any shots of the staircase, that was the main attraction for me ;)

Yeah, wasn't expecting it to be that bad but it wasn't the worst ive seen. I must have just been lucky with getting in because i spotted it before i even got the the building its self. As for the stair case, i only used it at the very end of the explore, after being in there for nearly 2 hours it was about time to leave. And i used a different set of stairs to get to the lower levels, that and it had those blue leaflets and paper work all over it and i wasn't about to clean them all up for the sake of one photo. Just out of interest was your entry point a bit of a squeeze?
 
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Mps6

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
Yeah, wasn't expecting it to be that bad but it wasn't the worst ive seen. I must have just been lucky with getting in because i spotted it before i even got the the building its self. As for the stair case, i only used it at the very end of the explore, after being in there for nearly 2 hours it was about time to leave. And i used a different set of stairs to get to the lower levels, that and it had those blue leaflets and paper work all over it and i wasn't about to clean them all up for the sake of one photo. Just out of interest was your entry point a bit of a squeeze?

Ahh fair enough, you need some fair lumens to get an average photo in there also. when i went it was not no, saying that i went very early on so it was swiss cheese for entry at that point. Think i know what one your on about however :rolleyes: in which case that must have been awkward :thumb
 

Chloeellis96

28DL Member
28DL Member
Hey! Probably a weird question, but what car was it? Me and a mate wanted to explore it today. We had no idea what it was and decided to go around the back seeing as there was an event at the hall and a fair few people smoking outside. We hoped over the fence & was surprised as we walked through some overgrown trees at the front, to see some what looked to be modern buildings. We then hesitated whether they were still in use & something in the bushes had been walking towards us, had then bolted away. My mate said it looked like a small dog? Anyway we saw some plaques on trees of people passed away, so we decided to go in further (which meant leaving the safety of the trees) but fortunately before we were out in the open, we saw a silver car pull up. At that point we pegged it to be honest! wondering if it is the same car could it be they stay there or visit often? We want to go back! Maybe we should try getting in the front this time!
 

Exxperious

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
First of all, avoid mentioning when you went as this is open to the public; I very highly doubt they will ever see this thread but it makes it easier for them if they did. Now to get to your point, yes it was a silver 4x4 but it sat there the whole time i was inside, no sign of life at all.
 

himynameisemma

28DL Member
28DL Member
Went for a wonder up to here very recently.. just as we got to the top of that long drive way my partner spotted a dog patrol van parked outside it with its doors open.. needless to say we didn't get any photos that day...
 

Exxperious

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
Went for a wonder up to here very recently.. just as we got to the top of that long drive way my partner spotted a dog patrol van parked outside it with its doors open.. needless to say we didn't get any photos that day...

I'd be surprised if there is anything left at all. Was in a right state when I went so no doubt it's got worse. And I reckon you would be fine it you got to and got in the main building. They are probably more concerned with more modern buildings at the back of the site.
 

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