'Dark and dingy' mental health hub gets £680k refurb

A mental health hub based in a 1920s building in Kent has re-opened after a £680,000 refurbishment which saw it closed for half a year.

Coleman House in Dover has been redecorated, with new windows and flooring fitted to improve conditions for patients and staff.

Sharon Bean, a nurse prescriber at Coleman House, said the building was "dark, dingy, cold, damp and smelly" before.

"Windows were rotting or wouldn't open and now it's light, friendly, welcoming and warm," she said. "The more that we can encourage people to talk and open up, the better their recovery is likely to be. "

"It all goes hand-in-hand - environment, patient care, treatment, intervention support equals recovery," she added.

Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust said the investment was particularly important as people in the town experienced some of the greatest health inequalities in the county.

Dover is ranked 78 out of 298 local authorities for deprivation, with 12% of neighbourhoods in the town "highly deprived" according to the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government.

The building, which has been operational since the early 1990s, is home to a range of services supporting people at different stages of their mental health journey, as well as perinatal mental health and mental health services for people with learning disabilities.

Julie Kirby, interim chief nurse, said: "When patients come in, they want to come into somewhere that feels welcoming.

"If you're sitting in a room it's very dark and you're trying to have a one-to-one therapy session, for example, that impacts that session more significantly."

Patients had been travelling to satellite sites along the south coast during the refurbishment but have now returned to the hub in Dover.

According to general manager Dan Lee, "the refurbishment cost just under £700k with funding coming from NHS sustainability budgets, meaning we can keep a vital building open and fit for purpose".

The building was re-opened by the Mayor of Dover, Councillor Bekah Dawes.

"I feel like the people here in Dover often can feel a little bit like they're an outlier and having this money invested in people who are using health services, mental health services particularly, is a physical manifestation of the care that they deserve and it means that they can continue to receive vital support," she said.

As part of the refurbishment, photographs donated by former trust colleague Gill Ashington are now displayed throughout the building.

She worked for the health trust for many years and now uses services at Coleman House to treat early-onset dementia.

"Coleman House is a place that has a special meaning for me because it's a place I've been coming to for a long time," she said.

"I wanted my photographs to help the building become a more welcoming place for people to get the help that they need."

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