New Y.M.C.A. Hut at Huddersfield Military Hospital

From the Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 7th April 1916.

Y.M.C.A. HUT.

NEW REST ROOM OPENED AT ROYDS HALL.

Since the Huddersfield Military Hospital was opened six months ago the need has been felt for some place in which the wounded soldiers could entertain or be entertained by their friends, or in which the men could spend a quiet hour in reading or writing.  Up to the present the soldiers' relatives or friends have had to visit the men in the wards, and it is felt that this is inconvenient and undesirable.  In consequence of the efforts of the members of the Y.M.C.A. that practice will henceforth be discontinued.

The surplus funds which remained after the building of the Y.M.C.A. “Huddersfield Hut" at Le Havre (France) have been devoted to the building of a Y.M.C.A. hut in the grounds at Royds Hall.  The hut was opened this afternoon.  It consists of a large refreshment room, and a writing room in which the men can deal with their correspondence.  The borough engineer, Mr. K. F. Campbell, designed the hut, and the contractors were Messrs. H. Hollingworth and Sons.  The cost will be about £500, of which about £400 was the surplus from the funds of the larger undertaking.  The refreshment room is furnished with tables and chairs, but the Y.M.C.A. officials would be glad to receive gifts from friends of couches, sofas, and basket armchairs for the greater comfort of the men. The catering arrangements will be carried out by voluntary helpers under the direction of the Y.M.C.A. Ladies’ Auxiliary.

[Royds Hall, a Victorian mansion,  had been bought by Huddersfield Corporation before the war.  It was operated as a military hospital by the British Red Cross; after the war, it became (and still is) a secondary school.]