Police came to the aid of a youth who suffered serious injuries yesterday (Thursday).
It happened while the youngster was vandalising The Retreat on Heslington Road, the former psychiatric hospital which is currently empty.
A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “Officers from York city neighbourhood policing team gave first aid to a teenager with serious leg injuries this afternoon.
“A group had been vandalising an abandoned building when the youth kicked through a glass door causing deep cuts and serious bleeding.
“He was rushed to hospital by ambulance.”
The Retreat, a Grade II* listed building, has been empty for a while. Opened by Quakers as a hospital for the mentally ill in 1796, it stopped providing in patient care at the site in 2018.
Its humane approach to treatment made it one of the most influential sites of its kind at the time.
Plans to turn the building into 120 homes were given the go ahead last month after councillors heard the site was becoming financially unsustainable without redevelopment.
Developer PJ Livesey Holdings Ltd is set to convert and build new homes in the grounds.