A PSYCHIATRIC hospital in York is to press ahead with closing its inpatient and residential services by the end of the year, with the loss of about 45 jobs.

But another 130 jobs which were at risk at The Retreat have been saved after two units were sold to a German hospital group, the Schoen Clinic, and its learning disabilities service was transferred over to the charity Mencap.

Up to 173 jobs were originally at risk at the renowned hospital in Heslington Road - founded by Quakers in 1796 - under proposals announced earlier this year in the wake of Government funding changes.

But a spokeswoman said yesterday that more than 70 per cent had been saved through the transfer of services.

She said The Retreat had signed a legally binding agreement with the family-run Schoen Clinic for the acquisition of its adult service units, Naomi and Kemp, which dealt with eating disorders and complex trauma respectively. “The transfer of these units will take place on January1.”

She said Schoen Clinic was the leading provider for mental health disorders in Germany and had entered the UK mental health market in 2017, with the transfer of a child and adolescent eating disorder facility in Birmingham.

Schoen executive director Christopher Schoen said the units were “an ideal complement to our rapidly expanding UK portfolio”.

Cathy Waters, CEO at The Retreat, said Schoen Clinic had values very similar to The Retreat’s, and she was delighted it was acquiring the units, which would ensure continuity of care for patients and continued employment for staff.

“As a larger healthcare group they can offer the security and investment necessary to deliver continued service development and quality improvement,” she said.

The spokeswoman said the Retreat had also been working with City of York Council for the transfer on January 1 of its learning disabilities residential service to Mencap, providing continuity of care for its tenants and jobs for its staff.

She said the older adult units, George Jepson and Katherine Allen, had closed. “We have safely supported the transition of all of the patients in these services onto new settings and have received excellent feedback from patients, carers and commissioners about the planning and management of this process,” she said.

She added that the Retreat would continue to run mental health services through the development and expansion of outpatient services at the Tuke Centre, including its autism and ADHD service and community psychological assessment and therapy services.

She added that it had put in place a comprehensive programme of support for staff at risk of redundancy to help them find new roles and opportunities, and she thanked staff for their "continued professionalism and dedication" at a difficult time. “They have consistently prioritised the care of our patients and tenants regardless of the uncertainty they have faced on a personal level,” she said.