Maudsley Hospital, Camberwell

Our assembly point is the Maudsley Psychiatric Hospital in Camberwell. Here, our walk leader Cynthia Bernheim describes the benefits of walking. “Research has shown that walking is an effective way of reducing stress and anxiety,” she says. “The walk aims to show people there are a range of things that they can do to improve their mental health.”

We then find out that the history of the hospital, which was the brainchild of Henry Maudsley, a prominent psychiatrist. Maudsley donated £30,000 in 1907 (£2m in today’s money) to London County Council to establish a hospital that treated rather than incarcerated patients.