Details
STANTON ST QUINTIN
1384/0/10023 HULLAVINGTON BARRACKS
01-DEC-05 Building 32 (Station Church)
GV II
Station church attached to Squadron Offices. 1935 - 6. A Bulloch, architectural advisor to the Air Ministry's Directorate of Works and buildings. Drawing No. 932/34. Bath stone ashlar on brickwork, concrete floors, plain tile roof covering.
PLAN: The building is in two parts, with a short link, forming an 'H': facing the approach road to the NE is the large single-storey single-space church, with recess for the altar-sanctuary flanked by small storage or office spaces at the SE end. This is linked by a narrow 2-storey unit containing toilets to the principal office range, which has a central entrance facing SW, in the direction of the Officers' Mess (qv). This unit is also in 2 storeys, with wings at either end forming a very flat 'H' plan. The offices have an open well staircase off the central axis, and adjoining the link unit, with a central corridor to double-banked offices, closed off at each end by a larger classroom in the wings. Roofs are all steeply pitched with hipped ends. Attached to the most southerly wing is a large, flat-roofed later addition, which is not included.
EXTERIOR: All windows are the original multi-paned wooden sash in flush boxes, some of considerable size, and breaking through the small box eaves-line. The main 2-storey range has seven 24-pane at first floor, above 21-pane units with segmental arched heads, flanking a central pair of panelled doors with full arched over-light with intersecting bars in a flush arch, with keystone and respond capitals. The wings have on the outer hipped end a large 40-pane sash which breaks through the eaves to a hipped half-dormer, and on the long returns are two similar units, flanked by a 20-pane at each end - but that to the right is partly covered by the extensions. At the inner end of the left wing the roof is stepped down, over two small 9-pane, but the right wing retains three lights; these wings are in one storey. The rear of the 2-storey range has square-headed 16-pane to the ground floor, and the link has sundry small lights. The church has three very large 45-pane breaking the eaves-line, as in the wings, alternating with four 24-pane, with five 24-pane on the inner flank. The right return has a small pair of plank doors in a large area or restructured stonework, and the left hand-end has later attached units. The ridge to this block has three deep slots to the ridge, possibly for ventilation.
INTERIOR: Generally simple, with dado rail moulded into plain plastered surfaces, and plastic tile or linoleum floors; panelled and half-glazed doors; the staircase, which has been enclosed at the upper level for fire safety purposes, is an open well closed string concrete structure, with rectangular steel bar balustrade having paired balusters and 4 raking rails, to a swept hardwood handrail, all in Art Deco style. The church halls is also simply finished, with the roof sweeps expressed internally, and the windows set to recesses.
HISTORY: This is a striking composition, carried out with care and consistency of detailing throughout this nationally-important base. It also retains the original windows, which are very varied in size and, by breaking through the eaves in places, create a powerfully modelled ensemble.
Hullavington, which opened on June 6th 1937 as a Flying Training Station, is in every respect the key station most strongly representative of the improved architectural quality characteristic of the air bases developed under the post-1934 expansion of the RAF. Its position in the west of England with other training and maintenance bases also prompted its selection in 1938 as one of series of Aircraft Storage Units for the storage of vital reserves destined for the operational front-line. For further details on the site, see Buildings 59, 60 and 61 (The Officers' Mess).
