There has been non-stop speculation in Monmouth in recent weeks that the town's hospital, due for closure when the new health facility opens, has been acquired by the Haberdashers School, sited opposite. Those who started the rumour obviously put two and two together and got five! They obviously argued that the two sites - school and hospital - are so close together that the latter would obviously be interested if and when the hospital site came on the market. The Beacon decided to establish fact from fiction and contacted the Haberdashers School for Girls. Extremely co-operative, as always, the school came up with a statement, pointing out that the hospital is not on the market and that considerable development work has already taken place, and is still taking place, on the school site. It was, in fairness to the school, the only possible statement it could make. After all, how could it say it was interested in something which is, at this moment in time, not for sale? However, this does not mean the school might not be interested in the hospital site, when it does come up for sale. Campaigners are trying to keep the site for the use of the people of Monmouth, and a sale is unlikely for some considerable time. But, we would be surprised if the Haberdashers School for Girls does not show some interest when that time comes.
