The Main Ward Block in 2003

2003 was 29 years since the Main Ward Block was completed and was also the final year in existence of the towerblock as it and the Maternity Block were sadly demolished in September-December this year.

In January 2003, the city centre N&N Hospital closed forever. The demolition of the 1960s and 1970s lower rise buildings (A&E, Pathology, Outpatients) started in about May 2003 and the demolition of the 2 towerblocks commenced in September, starting with the Maternity Block.

The Main Ward Block started to be nibbled away at by a red 777 demolition crane (pictured right) in October 2003 and demolition was finished by around the 20th-21st December 2003.

Demolition October-December 2003
Prev Year in existence The Main Ward Block in 2002
 * N&N_Demoliton_of_MWB_2003.png October 2003, almost 30 years after the completion, the demolition of the Main Ward Block started, after the Maternity Block had been demolished.
 * Throughout November 2003, the big red 777 Demolition crane clawed its way through the Main Ward Block, ripping apart the ward walls, lift foyer and kitchens and ground floor operating theatres. Several residents watched in mourning.
 * By mid December 2003, the entire Main Ward Block had been demolished and the site where the towerblock stood levelled out, probably using some of the rubble of the MWB itself. Almost all of the demolition waste was taken away to a landfill site by a yellow crane.
 * By 1st January 2004, no visible trace of the gigantic Main Ward Block remained. No doubt fragments of brick and other debris from the towerblock was lodged in the ground and built over with the new terraced housing.
 * 3 and 4 storey flats stand where the Main Ward Block stood.

Next Year In existence None

Legacy of the Main Ward Block
Even though the Main Ward Block was demolished over 11 years ago, photos that local residents and media took of the building over the years, and my research project on the building and the accurate 3D computer simulation of the building plus the Maternity Block and the rest of the hospital 15 years before demolition will ensure there will always be a record of the building. Also the original 1970-1971 drawings by Michael Everitt, the architect who designed the building survive on microfilm at Fielden And Mawson head offices in Norwich.

Also, even though it was not one of Norwich's prettiest buildings, it was used for 27 years and had thousands of admissions a year, plus the staff worked hard in caring for the patients so the Main Ward Block will have some sentimental value to former staff and even some patients and visitors. Often books only mention the history of old hospitals before the 1950s with just a few paragraphs on events after that era so this wiki is an ultimate tribute to the thousands of staff and hundreds of thousands of patients that used the Main Ward Block.


 * Several local residents and journalists have taken photos of the Main Ward Block, ensuring a visual record of the building.
 * The architects plans for the MWB survive, ensuring an exact record of the layout of the building remains.
 * My SketchUp Models of the N&N Hospital in 1988 and 1994 have recreated the MWB in a simulation, plus the rest of the hospital.