FLATS AT HALESOWEN


The Borough of Halesowen invite registered architects in Great Britain and Northern Ireland to submit designs in competition for development comprising about 250 flats at Highfields, Halesowen, Worcestershire. The assessor is Eric Lyons. There is a further £1,000 to provide up to ten further premiums. The sending-in day is March 31, 1960. Conditions are available from: Town Clerk, P.O. Box 14, Council House, Halesowen, Birmingham. Applications should include a cheque for £2 as deposit returnable on submission of design of return of Conditions by March 3, 1960.

Architects' Journal, 26th November, 1959, p. 576 


On May 16 the result of a competition for the layout and design of a new housing estate, comprising 250 dwellings, at Highfields Park, Halesowen, was officially announced. The assessor, Eric Lyons, awarded first premium of £1,000 to Mary E. L. Granelli, Miall Rhys-Davies, and Remo Granelli, second premium of £500 to Andrew Radwan, J. Warren Chalk, and Ronald Herron, and third premium of £200 to Michael J. Smith and Jeremy A. T. Goer.

The assessor describes this as “… a subtle and original assembly of nicely-planned flats…” In his report he states that “This side-by-side assembly of maisonettes and flats along central walkways is most skilfully handled. The placing of the garages between the blocks is a bold idea, but this arrangement would have disadvantages from the noise point of view.” In his criticism he observes that “some of the banked sides of the garages come too close to ground floor flats. The access ways might become squalid and would have been more acceptable if they had a greater width and better finishes.”’ [Drawings featured: Site Plan & sections; Block I, east elev.; Block IV, west elev.; Blocks I& IV, sections; Blocks I, III and IV, sections; Typical block layout, block I; Type M4 plans; Type M3 plans; Type F2 plan.]

Architects' Journal, 19th May, 1960, pp. 767-776