151-153 Chase Side, Southgate, N14 5HE

Medical dates:

Medical character:

The Sir Thomas Lipton Memorial Hostel for retired nurses was officially opened on 21st September 1935 by Lord Inverforth of Southgate.  The Hostel was located in Osidge, the former residence of tea merchant, yachtsman and philanthropist Sir Thomas Lipton (1850-1931), who had conveyed ownership of the property to the Queen's Nursing Association.  The house had been valued at £45,000 and Sir Thomas had also bequeathed £20,000 to provide a sufficient yearly income to cover the running expenses.

It was Sir Thomas's wish that the Hostel be dedicated to the memory of his mother - the 'guiding star' of his life. (His mother's house, Johnstone Villa, in Cambuslang, Glasgow, had been used an auxiliary hospital during WW1 and, in 1925, on his 75th birthday, was converted into the Lipton Memorial Nursing Home.)

Osidge, a low 3-storey house with a half-basement, had been built in 1808 and stood in 5 acres of grounds.  The building had a colonial-style verandah running along the back of it.  The Hostel could accommodate 14 Queen's Nurses of the Southgate District Nursing Association, who each had their own bedroom.  It was intended that district nursing activities, including a midwifery and maternity service, would be carried out from the Hostel.

By the 1950s the Hostel had become a care home, with 24 single rooms for women on the ground and first floor (about 75% of the residents were retired nurses).  Three communal lounges, a kitchen and large dining room were also located on the ground floor, as were the administrative offices.  An annexe, Shamrock House, had been built within the grounds.  It contained apartments for retired nurses who wished to live independently.

In 2006 the Board of Trustees for the Sir Thomas Lipton Memorial Hostel Trust transferred control of the Home to the charity Friends of the Elderly.


Present status (February 2009)

 The Hostel was renamed the Sir Thomas Lipton Memorial Home.  

Osidge was Grade II listed in 1982.