Portraits of George Fenwick and wife Constantia saved from former Fenwick Hospital site in Pikes Hill, Lyndhurst

Two prized portraits have been saved from a former New Forest village community hospital at the 11th hour after it was controversially sold at auction.

As reported in the A&T, the old cottage hospital in Pikes Hill, Lyndhurst, was sold by the NHS despite residents’ outcry and claims it had been gifted to the village by its founder George Fenwick.

Opened in 1909, it closed as a hospital in 2005 and was run as a health and wellbeing centre by Social Care in Action (SCiA) from 2008 to 2022.

Despite a campaign by League of Friends of Fenwick Hospital, backed by MP Sir Julian Lewis, the NHS pushed ahead with the sale.

But Lyndhurst resident Jennifer Lane wasn’t finished with the site yet. She remembered seeing large portraits of George Fenwick and his wife Constantia inside and made plans to save them.

She told the A&T she had seen the pictures hanging in the hospital vestibule and wanted to ensure they were retained for the village.

“I’ve been trying for months to find them. The hospital was cleared out a year ago, but there was no inventory so no-one knew where they were.

“I went to the NHS, the heritage centre, the council – nobody knew.”

Eventually, with the help of NHS Property Services, Jennifer was told the portraits were still inside.

She went along to the site with a representative of the service, Catherine Hall, last Thursday and the portraits were handed over ahead of the keys to the site going to the new owner.

Jennifer, who lives in the converted former summer residence of George Fenwick, plans to take them back to her home temporarily before they are donated to the New Forest Heritage Centre in the village.

Explaining her connection she added: “I live in his old house so I felt it was an important to save them, as it is part of the history of Lyndhurst.

“It’s lovely to think we’re bringing them home at last – I can quite imagine them walking around the house.

“They used to come from Bournemouth with two footmen and change horses at the Cat & Fiddle before heading on to Allum Green, where they would reside for the summer.”

She added: “It is such a shame it has closed – in its day it was wonderful. It has been a godsend to the the people of Lyndhurst.”

A spokesperson for auction house Allsop confirmed to the A&T it had sold the site earlier this month for £825,000 but did not reveal the buyer's identity.