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It's rundown but 'all-glass' school
is still worth saving
• ASHMOUNT School, in Hornsey Lane, Archway, designed in 1954 by HT Cadbury-Brown, one of the principal architects of the Festival of Britain, was put on the “local list” of buildings of architectural interest by the council.
But now it wants to rebuild the school in Crouch Hill Community Park, which is metropolitan open land, and sell off – ideally demolish – the existing school.
To be allowed to do this, it has to persuade the Greater London Authority, guardian of metropolitan open land, that there is no alternative, so it commissioned a study of the potential of the existing school for refurbishment, from specialist conservation architects Purcell Miller Tritton.
They, however, confirmed the architectural importance of the “all-glass” school and the potential for alterations to meet present standards. But the council has announced that it intends to pursue the relocation plan since the existing school is “dilapidated” and offers a “very poor teaching and learning environment” which, despite the findings of Purcell Miller Tritton, cannot be rectified.
There can be only one agency responsible for any “dilapidation” here, but if all dilapidated buildings in the past had been demolished rather than refurbished then Islington would now have none of its treasured Georgian squares and streets.
Architecture did not stop 100 or 200 years ago, and more recent buildings of merit are just as worthy of conservation. The qualities of Ashmount School are unlikely to survive conversion into housing (even if the council, after selling it, could insist on that), any more than the community park is likely to survive conversion into a school playground.
The council should reconsider its plans in the light of the findings of its own report.
JAMES DUNNETT
Barnsbury Road, N1
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