Former St Leonard’s school to become new mental health centre

The former St Leonard’s school in Stafford is set to become a new mental health centre run by Turning Point.

The new centre is expected to open next year and will offer walk-in mental health support without the need for a referral.

Stafford MP Leigh Ingham said she had met with the Turning Point team to discuss the services they plan to offer from the St Leonard’s site.

She said the new centre would help provide support earlier, before people reach crisis point.

Walk-in support without a referral

Ms Ingham said constituents had repeatedly raised concerns about people having to wait until their mental health had deteriorated significantly before receiving help.

She said: “By the time people finally get help for their mental health, they’re already in crisis.”
She added that this should not be the starting point for accessing support.

The new St Leonard’s centre is intended to offer a more accessible option, with people able to walk in and seek help without first being referred by another service.

Further details about the full range of services planned for the new centre have not yet been announced.

More than a century of history at St Leonard’s

The former St Leonard’s school building dates from 1905 and is Grade II listed.

It was designed by Stafford-born architect Henry Thomas Sandy and built close to the junction of St Leonard’s Avenue and Lichfield Road. The school opened in January 1906, with separate entrances for boys, girls and infants.

According to Staffordshire Past Track, the school was built partly to cater for an influx of children after Siemens Brothers opened its Stafford works on the opposite side of Lichfield Road in 1903. Many workers and their families had moved to Stafford from the company’s factory in Woolwich.

St Leonard’s Primary School remained associated with the site for more than a century before moving to new premises at the nearby Kingston Centre in 2023.

More recently, the former school site has been used as a temporary car park associated with GE Vernova.

Its proposed use by Turning Point would therefore bring the historic building back into regular community use.

Current service remains open at Café 43

Until the new centre opens, Turning Point services remain available at Café 43 on Browning Street in Stafford.

The current service is open:
Monday to Friday from 4pm to 10pm
Saturday and Sunday from 12 noon to 8pm

People can also contact the service on 07889 010921.

Ms Ingham said the new centre would not solve every issue around mental health provision, but described local services close to home as something Stafford should have more of.

She said she would continue pushing for further mental health support in the town.