An abandoned orphanage in the centre of Preston has been pinpointed as one place to help ease the city’s housing crisis.

St Joseph’s Orphanage, in Mount Street, was also a former hospital, could provide uip to 80 apartments if it was converted.

Preston City Council has been handed £165,000 to try and encourage development at six sites in the city, including the orphanage.

The building, which has been empty for decades, has fallen into disrepair.

It has become a hotspot for urban explorers who want to see what lurks in the shadowy windows. The footage above comes from the Urban Ex Boys YouTube channel when they went inside the building in August last year.

Related: In pictures exploring the inside of the former orphanage

Many Blog Preston readers have been sharing their memories or thoughts on the building on our Facebook page, and in a long-running post on the site since 2009 with many people having being born in the former Mount Street Hospital.

What are your memories of the orphanage or when it was a hospital? Let us know in the comments below