The New Town Centre, Stevenage, Hertfordshire: Architecture and Significance
Author(s): Emily Cole, Elain Harwood
The historic market town of Stevenage was the first location to be designated for major expansion under the New Towns Act 1946, making it Britain's first post-war new town. As part of this a new town centre was planned from 1946. Informed by the ideas of architects and planners including Gordon Stephenson and Clarence Stein, the detailed design was undertaken by Stevenage Development Corporation, under Chief Architect Leonard Vincent. The shopping precinct, with surrounding car parks and bus station, was built first, begun in earnest in 1956 and officially opened in April 1959. Its design is notable: the fully pedestrian precinct is one of the earliest examples of this kind of development in Britain and on a scale unequalled in Europe at the time of its initiation. The shopping precinct was designated as a conservation area in 1988 (revised 2010), and is notable for its uniformity, integrity and level of survival; it contains two grade-II listed structures (the sculpture Joy Ride and the clock tower). Provision was also made in the town centre for offices, community, entertainment and public buildings. Stevenage's success and growth resulted in extensions to the central area in the 1960s and 1970s but by the early twenty-first century this was said to be in decline. There is an ongoing scheme of regeneration and change for the town centre, which this report aims to inform.
- Report Number:
- 267/2020
- Series:
- Research Report
- Pages:
- 249
- Keywords:
- Building Recording Modern Standing Building Building Investigation Building
