A collection of 8 black and white negatives, showing a Ministry of Works distribution depot in Hayes, Middlesex. The contemporary Ministry of Works envelop indicates that the centre was owned by the company Imperial Chemicals Industries (I.C.I). The Temporary Housing Act of 1944/5 was intended to alleviate the acute housing shortages of the immediate postwar years, mostly through the construction of prefabricated, modular housing. The Ministry of Works was the government department tasked with the organisation and efficiency of the push for housing construction. A number of individual designs and construction methods for housing were built during the 1940s. To reduce costs and increase efficiency, a number of distribution centres were established across the country. These centres stored the component parts for both the external and internal pieces of the housing and some of the designs (Swedish and US housing) had parts shipped to the UK to await distribution and construction. Large airfields, Nissen Huts, warehouses and hangers, built for the war and decommissioned after 1945, were commonly used, although larger business premises were also deployed.
The original Ministry of Works storage envelope lists the operator as “F”.
4 of the 8 images were catalogued and digitised as part of a 2020 project.
This is part of the Sub Series: PSA01/04/H Housing; within the Series: PSA01/04 Negatives; within the Collection: PSA01 Property Services Agency
Source: Historic England Archive
Mid 20th Century Prefabricated House, Mid 20th Century Depot, Mid 20th Century Warehouse
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