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THE ROLE OF THE ARCHITECT IN POST—WAR STATE HOUSING: A case study of the housing work of the London County Council 1939 - 1956 THE ARCHITECT OF TO-DAY lk plans in a world of social cconomic and cultural • transition NICHOLAS MERTHYR DAY PhD Thesis UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK Department of the History of Art June 1988 List of plates V List of figures xvi List of abbreviations xvii Summary xviii Preface xix INTRODUCTION 1 PART I : GENERAL ISSUES 1.1 DEBATES CONCERNING ARCHITECTURAL PRACTICE AND THEORY 6 The Status and function of the architect 6 i The private versus public architect debate 6 ii AST and trade unionism 14 iii Architects and leftwing activity 19 Architectural theory 22 Definitions of style 22 ii Post-war architectural groups 31 The development of architectural paradigms for reconstruction 34 i Paradigm I Le Corbusier 35 ii Paradigm 11 Sweden: 43 iii Paradigm III : Russia 50 1.2 CENTRAL GOVERNMENT POLICY 1939 - 1956 61 The inter-war years 1918-39 61 The war years 1939-45 65 i The Dudley Report 65 ii The Housing Manual 1944 68 iii The coalition Government Housing Programme 69 The post-war years 72 i The 1945 election campaign 72 a) Conservative party policy 73 b) Labour party policy 75 ii The Labour Government 1945-51 78 a) The debate on the housing shortage 1945 79 b) The 1946 Housing Act 83 c) The 1949 Housing Act 87 d) The Housing Manual 1949 89 iii The Conservative Government policy 1951-56 90 1.3 AN ANALYSIS OF THE ORGANIZATION OF THE LCC'S HOUSING WORK .96 The committees and departments responsible for housing ....96 The structure and staffing of the LCC's Architects' Housing Division 1939-50 100 i The pre-war structure 101 ii The post-war structure 104 a) The special meeting of the Housing and Public Health committee 14th November 1945 105 b) The Chief Clerk's report 107 C) The Architect's report 108 d) The Valuer 110 e) The decision of the Housing and Public Health committee's special meeting 111 f) The Director of Housing and Valuer's new organization 112 g) New appointments in the Architect's department. 114 The Architects' Journal campaign 119 The LCC's response to the Architects' Journal campaign ...133 i The special meeting of the Housing Committee 2nd December 1949 133 a) The Clerk's report 134 b) The Architect's report 134 c) The Director of Housing and Valuer's report 136 d) The second reports 138 The new Housing Division 1950-56 142 The reaction in the Architects' Journal to the change in the LCC's policy 148 PART /I t THE HOMING WORK OF THE LCC 1939 - 1956 3.1 THE FORMAN PERIOD 1939 - 1945 151 LCC housing policy 1930-39: In-county estates 152 LCC housing policy 1939-45 161 ii i An outline of Forshaw's Design and planning policy 1942 161 ii The County of London Plan 167 iii The reaction of the Housing and Public Health Committee to the County of London Plan 173 iv The development of the Woodberry Down site 179 a) The Housing and Public Health committee meeting of the 27th January 1943 179 b) The Housing and Public Health committee meeting of the 15th March 1943 181 c) The Housing and Public Health committee meeting of the 6th October 1943 184 d) The Housing and Public Health committee meeting of the 26th July 1944 185 Analysis of Woodberry Down estate 188 a) Planning 188 b) Construction 194 vi The 8-storey blocks Woodberry Down 200 a) Structure 200 b) Amenities 202 c) Design and aesthetic effect 204 2.2 THE WALKER PERIOD 1945 - 1950 214 LCC Housing policy 1939-56: Cottage estates 214 The Greater. London Plan 216 i The Green.Belt debate 216 ii The Chessington site 220 iii Mixed development 226 iv Architectural expression of the Greater London Plan 231 Design and layout of LCC out-county estates 1945-56 233 i Harold Hill and Sheerwater estates: design, planning and social order 235 Design of LCC in-county estates 1945-50 243 i The Kingswood estate 244 ii Walker's policy questioned 246 iii The Lansbury "Live Architecture" ekhibition 248 2.3 THE MATTHEW AND MARTIN PERIOD 1950 - 1956 253 Policy develo ent 1950-56 253 i The 14 Warbworth sites 253 11 Mixed development redefined 256 iii The provision of houses on in-county sites 261 iv Tenants' reactions to high blocks 262 V New flat types 264 iii vi The exhibition of housing schemes 265 vii In—county higher income group developments 267 Analysis of individual schemes 270 i Prince's Way site (Ackroydon Estate) 270 ii Highbury Quadrant site (Highbury Estate) 273 iii Portsmouth Road site (Alton East Estate) 276 iv Loughborough Road site (Loughborough Estate) 279 V Roehampton Lane site (Alton West Estate) 283 vi Brooklands Park site (Brooklands Park Estate) 286 The six developments: a summary 288 CONCLUSION 294 1 Summary of sections 1.1 to 2.3 294 ii Thematic analyses 324 iii Overview 335 NOTES AND REFERENCES 340 Preface / introduction 340 Section 1.1 341 Section 1.2 349 Section 1.3 . 356 Section 2.1 364 Section 2.2 370 Section 2.3 376 Conclusion 383 BIBLIOGRAPHY 384 Unpublished Documents 384 Parliamentary Debates 384 Government Papers, Circulars & Reports 384 Political Pamphlets 385 Newspapers and Journals Surveyed 385 Unpublished Theses 386 Books and Articles 386 PLATES & FIGURES See Microfilm. iv LIST OF PLATES Frontispiece The Architect of Today. Photograph: A tribute to architecture to commemorate Coronation Year (Tersons Limited: 1953). 1 Le Corbusier. Unite d'Habitation de grandeur conforme (premier project). Photograph: W. Boesiger, Le Corbusier, Oeuvre complete 1938-46 (Zurich, 1946) p.172. 2 Le Corbusier. Designs for the Unite d'Habitation, Marseille. Photograph: SIN Boesiger, Le Corbusier. Oeuvre complete 1938-46 (Zurich, 1946) p.184. 3 Le Corbusier. Model for Unite d'Habitation, Marseille. Photograph: W. Boesiger, Le Corbusier. Oeuvre complete 1938-46 (Zurich, 1946) p.184. 4 Building Modern Sweden: the builders. Photograph: B. Hulten, Building Modern Sweden (London: Penguin, 1951) p.5. 5 Swedish Housing: Plan of agernas neighbourhood unit. Photographs B. Hulten, Building Modern Sweden (London: Penguin, 1951) p.29. 6 Swedish mixed development. Photograph: B. Hulten, Building Modern Sweden (London: Penguin, 1951) p.7. 7 Swedish Housing: "Point buildings". Photograph: B. Hulten, Building Modern Sweden (London: Penguin, 1951) p.24. 8 Swedish Housing: Ribershus, Ma1m8. Photograph: G.E. Kidder Smith, Sweden Builds (London, 1957) p.67. 9 Swedish Housing: Remersholm, Stockholm. Photograph: G.E. Kidder Smith, Sweden Builds (London, 1957) p.61. 10 Swedish Housings Elfinggarden, Stockholm. BackstriSm and Reinius architects. Photograph: G.E. Kidder Smith, Sweden Builds (London, 1957) p.93. 11 Swedish Housing: terraced houses malm8. photograph: B. Hulten, Building Modern Sweden (London: Penguin, 1951) p.17. 12 Russian Socialist Realism: T. Kusnetzov's Sanatorium of the People's Commissariat of Heavy Industry at Sochi, 19308. Photograph: AR, vol.92 (November 1942) p.110. 13 Russian Socialist Realism: Ukrainian Government Palace at Kiev, 19308. Photograph: AR, vol.92 (November 1942) p.11. 14 Russian Socialist Realism: Leningrad House of Soviets, 19308. Photograph: Architect and Building News, vol.160 (6th October, 1939) p.11. 15 Russian Socialist Realism: Russian Pavil ion in New York, 1939, B.M. Iofan and K.S. Alabyan architects. Photograph: AR, vol.92 (November, 1942) p.112. 16 Russian Socialist Realism: Model of the Palace of the Soviets. K.G. Golfralkh, B.M. Iofan and' V.A. Shtchiko architects. Photograph: AR, vol.92 (November, 1942) p.112. 17 Russian Socialist Realism: Project for flat development at Kiev, 1939. Photograph: Architect and Building News, vol.160 (13th October, 1939) p.42. 18 Russian Socialist Realism: Flats in Moscow, 1939. Photograph: Architect and Building News, vol.160 (20th October, 1939) p.65. 19 Russian Socialist Realism: Cottage designs, 1930s. N. Bylinkin, G. Goltz, N. Satronov and Y. Shmenon architects. Photograph: AR, vol.101 (May, 1947) p.183. 20 View of Mono r Oak Estate, Deptford and Lewisham, 1932. Photograph: N.M. Day, 1988. 21 Plan, Mono r Oak Estate, Deptford and Lewisham, 1932. Photograph: London Housing 1937 (London: LCC, 1937) p.92. 22 4-storey block, Honour Oak Estate, Deptford and Lewisham, LCC 1932. Photograph: N.M. Day, 1988. 22 4-storey block, oaklandm Estate, Clapham, LCC 1935. Photograph: N.M. Day, 1988. 24 Plan. Oaklands Estate, Clapham, LCC 1935. Photograph: London Housing 1937 (London: LCc, 1937) p.99. 29 Balcony access façade, 4-storey block, Oaklands Estate, Clapham, LCC 1935. Photograph: N.M. Day, 1988. 26 New Type Plans, LCC 1936. Photograph: London Housing 1937, (London: LCC, 1937) pp.42-43. 27 New P.S. Type flats, White City, Hammersmith, LCC 1939. Photograph: GLRO, Photograph Library. 20 Lubetkin and Tecton, "Working Clams Flats Competition", 1935, Photograph: P. Coe and M. Reading, Lubetkin and Tecton (London, 1981) p.138. 29 New Type Plan: axonometrio view of a three room dwelling, LCC 1936. Photograph: London Housing 1937 (London: LCC, 1937) p.44. 30 Layout of housing blocks, LcC 1937. Photograph: London Housing 1937 (London: LCC, 1937) p.45. 91 Plan, White City Estate, Hammersmith.