IT may be long gone but these images recall a bygone time when mental health issues were dealt in a very different way.

The imposing Victorian structure of Essex Hall in Colchester was a familiar one to many in the town up to the point in the mid 1980s when it was pulled down and made way for new development.

Amongst them are images showing how treatment of patients was moving away from institutionalisation to stimulation and individual care by the early 1980s.

They include the presentation of sensory aids to help patients who had to stay in bed for long periods of time.

With hospitals for those needing long term care becoming out-moded, Essex Hall, Turner Village and Severalls all became outdated.

But these photographs show how it has its place in the town’s history.