Chingford Town Hall

Chingford Town Hall is a municipal building in The Ridgeway, Chingford, London. It is a locally listed building.[1]

Chingford Town Hall
Chingford Town Hall in 2016
LocationThe Ridgeway, Chingford
Coordinates51.6300°N 0.0036°W / 51.6300; -0.0036
Built1929
ArchitectFrank Nash and H.T. Bonner
Architectural style(s)Baroque style
Chingford Town Hall is located in London Borough of Waltham Forest
Chingford Town Hall
Shown in Waltham Forest

History

In the early 20th century Chingford Urban District Council was based at some aging council offices in Station Road.[2] After civic leaders found that the council offices were inadequate for their needs, they elected to construct a purpose-built facility: the site selected on the Ridgeway had previously been open land.[3]

The building, which was designed by Frank Nash and H.T. Bonner in the Baroque style and built by William Griffiths, Sons & Cromwell, was completed in December 1929.[4][5][6] The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with five bays facing onto the Ridgeway; the central section of three bays featured a portico flanked by Doric order columns on the ground floor; there was a balcony and a round headed window with stone surround on the first floor and the borough coat of arms and a pediment above; a clock and flagpole were erected at roof level. Internally, the principal rooms were the entrance hall with fine terrazzo flooring on the ground floor[7] and the double-height council chamber with public gallery on the first floor.[5]

The building became the headquarters of the Municipal Borough of Chingford after it was awarded municipal borough status in 1938.[8]

The town hall was extended by the addition a two-storey office block, designed by Tooley and Foster and built by Gray Conoley & Co. to the south west of the town hall. The new block, which became known as the "Chingford Municipal Offices", was officially opened by the mayor, Councillor J. A. Cooper, on 12 November 1960.[5][9]

The town hall ceased to be the local seat of government when the enlarged London Borough of Waltham Forest was formed in 1965.[10] The Chingford Municipal Offices were subsequently used as additional workspace by the council until 2007[11] but, after being found surplus to requirements, the whole site was sold to a developer, Fairview New Homes, in 2011.[12] The Chingford Municipal Offices were subsequently demolished and site redeveloped for residential use: the town hall itself was converted into five apartments after planning consent was given in January 2013.[13][14]

References
  1. "Locally listed buildings" (PDF). London Borough of Waltham Forest. p. 24. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  2. "No. 33024". The London Gazette. 24 February 1925. p. 1359.
  3. "Ordnance Survey Map". 1898. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  4. "Former Chingford town hall set to be turned into homes". East London and West Essex Guardian. 3 January 2013. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  5. "London's Town Halls". Historic England. p. 191. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  6. O'Brien, Charles; Pevsner, Nikolaus; Cherry, Bridget (2005). The Buildings of England. London 5: East. New Haven, London. Yale University Press. p. 716. ISBN 978-0300107012.
  7. "Gilmartin Ley, The Old Town Hall, Chingford, London, E4". Archived from the original on 31 July 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  8. Powell, W R (1966). "'The parish and borough of Chingford', in A History of the County of Essex". London: British History Online. pp. 97–114. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  9. "Chingford: Municipal offices plans unveiled". East London and West Essex Guardian. 26 March 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
  10. "Local Government Act 1963". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  11. "Altitude Hornsey" (PDF). Fairview New Homes. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  12. "Local Plan" (PDF). London Borough of Waltham Forest. p. 22. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  13. "Chingford Municipal Offices, 16 The Ridgeway, Chingford E4". London Borough of Waltham Forest. 8 January 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  14. "Old Town Hall". Savills. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
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