They had purchased the 82-acre site in 1898, following a meeting convened at Marlborough House by the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII).

[4] The Public Health (Prevention and Treatment of Disease) Act 1913, authorised the Metropolitan Asylums Board to treat those with tuberculosis.

During the Second World War, it took some civilians, but was used predominantly for servicemen and by the Canadian Red Cross and Air Force who enlarged it by building wooden huts.

Up to 18 male students with tuberculosis from around the British Isles were offered convalescence in a "detached and self-contained ward".

Entry criteria included being full-time, male and non-infectious, that is, sputum culture negative.

[10] The main buildings were laid out to form a south-facing arc with a medical residence in the middle and two-storey wings with 16 rooms per floor, each with large windows to provide patients with light and fresh air.

[9][11] Lauriston Elgie Shaw, an anatomy demonstrator who played an active part in the origins of the National Insurance Act 1911, became manager of the Metropolitan Asylums Board in 1916 and was chair of Pinewood Sanatorium sub-committee.