Fig. 3: London Borough of CamdenFig. 4: Hampstead Ward and Location of HNT8
SummaryThis report presents community-led Conservation Area guidance and an application for GradeII* Listing for Highgate New Town Phase 1 (HNT), Camden, London, designed by architectPeter Tábori and constructed 1967-78. The study it presents was produced by a working-groupcomprising residents from HNT, supported by their Tenants and Residents Association (TRA) theWhittington Estate Residents Association (WERA) and community/heritage researcher Tom Davies(AHO) together with architectural historian Professor Mark Swenarton as consultant. The reportsets out conservation guidance, developed through a community-led process and specific to HNT,for inclusion in the Dartmouth Park Conservation Area (DPCA). This is followed by the applicationfor Grade II* Listing for the deliberation of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)and Historic England (HE), which seeks to recognise the national significance of HNT as exemplarypublic-housing. These are made on the basis of its exceptional heritage values, the importance ofretaining community spaces for its community and strong resident support from that community.The conservation guidance seeks to address the current lack of guidance specific to HNT in theDPCA appraisal, whilst the application for Grade II* Listing is made on grounds of threat from thecumulative impact of inappropriate maintenance and other interventions at HNT. As such, it seeksto provide adequate protection from such impacts in the future. This accords with and meets therequirements of the DCMS’ Principles of Selection for Listed Buildings, the Historic England ListingGroup’s programme of works focusing on Post-war buildings and current Strategic Listing Prioritiesas a Post-war Landscape for the external aspects and community spaces at HNT (DCMS 2018).This study takes its lead from the Dartmouth Park Neighbourhood Forum (DPNF), which identifies aneed for better community engagement and representation and who have expressed their supportfor this initiative. It is intended to present the heritage of HNT from the perspective of its community,then and now, exploring HNT’s design, build and use (adoption/adaptation) by the community todevelop a diverse narrative providing a comprehensive understanding of HNT as ‘place’ (in thesense of its significance) and community (Norberg-Schulz in Knox 2005: 1).The application for Grade II* Listing presents new information about design, development and lifeat HNT from the extensive insights of new research by Mark Swenarton in Cook’s Camden: TheMaking of Modern Housing, additional research by Tom Davies and a programme of workshopswith residents (Swenarton 2017: 108-135). It provides a fuller and richer picture of HNT than thatavailable for consideration under a previous application in 2006. This comprises Tábori’s distinctapproach at HNT, drawing on the heritage of Italian Hill-towns and teaching and experiencegained from working with architects Ernö Goldfinger, Richard and Su Rogers (who has expressedsupport for the listing) and Team 4, Denys Lasdun, Serge Chermayeff, Paul Rudolph and Tábori’scolleagues at Camden Architects (Camden Borough Architects). It reveals connections betweenthe UK, Europe and the US and a unique approach to urban renewal with an exotic Italianflavour at HNT; through which Tábori drew upon his diverse experience to achieve somethinghis peers had been unable to do. Tábori’s adeptness in assimilating and developing ideas, fromcommunity-focused design to standards of production and technical innovation, represents a uniqueachievement in HNT as housing for community, in which it stands its ground with contemporariessuch as Alexandra Road and Lillington Gardens; both Grade II* Listed. Grade II* Listing at HNTwould recognise its high significance and with adoption of specific conservation guidance willprovide the support and protection it warrants in addition to that extended under the DPCA (Camden2009).The resident workshops revealed a strong correlation between how residents have adopted and useHNT in everyday-life and Tábori’s intentions for the design. They also provided the opportunity todiscuss findings and to exchange stories and views through which the conservation guidance wasdeveloped. Frustrations over current management, support and inappropriate repairs were revealedto stem from a lack of understanding and representation of how HNT works in current conservationguidance (the DPCA). This was addressed by developing the specific conservation guidance setout in this report for inclusion in the DPCA. In these workshops an initial focus on maintenanceand use of external areas developed into considering how that enables residents to share space,communicate and socialise. Through this the unique community spaces at HNT emerged as keyin providing the quality of everyday life and as an important community resource requiring bettersupport and maintenance. The vital community resource they provide, represents just one of theimportant factors in the application for Grade II* Listing. The workshops also covered the technicalaspects of HNT’s design and how they can and can’t be modified addressing inappropriatealterations and identifying areas of potential to help residents get more out of HNT. On this basisof this, the conservation guidance and the application for Grade II* Listing are made equally on thebasis of HNT as place and community.9