21/10/04

Experimental Islington School earmarked for demolition

The Twentieth Century Society has put forward for spot listing Hungerford Primary School on Hungerford Road in Islington. The school is to be demolished and replaced with an apartment building and a new school. Islington Council seem determined to approve the scheme and demolish one of their most remarkable 1960s buildings.

The school is a highly sophisticated and experimental building, dating from 1968-70 and designed by the Inner London Education Authority. Its innovative plan of interconnecting wedges precedes deconstructivist designs, and the treatment of materials, including exposed concrete blocks, remind of the Smithsons’ work and the architecture of Herman Hertzberger. The dramatic roofscape and the carefully designed landscaping surrounding the building add great interest to the neighbourhood. All this would be swept away to be replaced by a denser scheme.

The school has been left to deteriorate and very little maintenance has been carried out. We urge Islington Council to retain and repair this building.

For further information please contact:
Cordula Zeidler, Caseworker, The Twentieth Century Society , tel 020 7250 3857, or email Cordula.Zeidler@c20society.org.uk

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