The East End Maternity Hospital at Theydon Mount (Part 1)

The East End Maternity Hospital was founded in 1884 as the Mother's Lying-in Hospital in Shadwell, an inner city area which lies between Wapping and Limehouse. In 1889 the hospital moved to Commercial Road and became known as the East End Mothers Home. By 1930 it had about 60 beds. The hospital was established for the treatment of poor married women during childbirth and also for the training of midwives and nurses.

At the outbreak of war in 1939, the hospital was closed and the authorities needed to find suitable premises in a safe location and Epping was considered such an area and Hill Hall, which at the time was owned by Edward, Lord Hay seemed an ideal building. Lord Hay agreed that part of Hill Hall could be used for the war effort and the servant's wing was considered the most suitable part for the location of the maternity hospital.

The servant's wing faced south-west and was two storeys high. The ground floor contained three main rooms and a storeroom, whilst the first floor contained seven bedrooms and a bathroom.

In September 1939, staff patients and equipment was moved from the east end to Hill Hall and the training school was also transferred following the approval of the Central Midwives Board. Provision was also needed for those expectant mothers who had been evacuated a suitable hostel was found at Spriggs Oak, Palmers Hill, in Epping, prior to their confinement at Hill Hall. Spriggs Oak which was offered by its owner, Councillor William Trent¹, a member of the Epping Urban District Council, consisted of a 3 storey building, with tennis court, croquet lawn.

An Evacuation Committee took charge of the running of the hostel on behalf of the council and it preparations made to accommodate between 30 and 35 people. A paid resident cook/superintendent was put in charge of the hostel, which opened on the 23 September 1939, the cost of running it being estimated at £1,100 per annum.

Meanwhile the Management Committee of the East End Maternity Hospital led by the Chairman, Lady Margaret Ebbisham, held a meeting at Hill Hail in late September where it was decided that Doctors would be allowed to send patients from the East End dircotly to Hill Hall for treatnient.

With the 'phoney war' the expected air raids did not materialise and it was suggested to the Ministry of Health that the Eaf End Maternity Hospital should re-open, which was agreed. However Hill Hall and Spriggs Oak continued to receive expectant mothers in the autumn and winter of 1939/1940.

Expectant mothers were expected to pay 1/6d per day towards their keep, and those experiencing financial problems being advised to seek help from the Ministry of Labour.⁶

In November the Evacuation Committee braced themselves for an expected large influx of expectant mothers that were due to arrive in Epping under the Government evacuation scheme. Much effort was put in place to receive them, but the mothers did not arrive and the committee later expressed its annoyance at the situation.

Relationships between the Evacuation Committee and the Management Committee were also strained, due to the arrival of a number of expectant mothers who arrived at Hill Hall from the East End and were taken to Spriggs Oak. As none of these women were part of the official Government scheme, they were deemed to be 'late evacuees' and none were asked to make any contribution to theit keep. Of the six women who arrived on the 12" December, three were unable to pay the 1/6d for food. When the matter was referred to the Ministry of Labour, an official said he was unable to treat them as evacuees and they therefore did not qualify for financial assistance, a decision that was confirmed by the Ministry of Health.

At a meeting of the Epping Urban District Council Evacuation Committee on the 13 January 1940, they regarded the situation as intolerable and in its summing up questioned why the ratepayers of Epping should be paying the costs of maternity services for persons living in the East End, while they were denied such facilities themselves.

To be continued.