1- 4, 17-20 and 24-30 Hampden Hill - Type B

Hampden Hill, Beaconsfield

Building

Roofed and walled permanent structures.

Asset type

Architect designed Chalet style house built in early 1960s. Significance: Hampden Hill survives in relatively good condition. None of the original buildings have been lost and now new buildings have been added to the conservation area. Threats: Several have been extended and/or ancillary buildings have been inserted which are not always in keeping with the original architecture and topography of the site. Some timber windows and doors have been replaced with uPVC double-glazed units. Boundary fences are also out of character with the open-plan design of the site.

Age

Built between 1959 and 1963

Architectural and Artistic Interest

Designed by Mary Christian Hamp, one of the few female architects of her time. She is associated with the prestigious firm of Colcutt & Hamp. The design, layout and alignment of the buildings respects the topography of the site. There is a large communal space in the form of a central green at the top of the hill. Yellow stock brick and black stained weather-boarding, contrasting with white timber framed doorways, window frames and bargeboards. Steeply pitched grey concrete tiled roofs. All the houses have pitched roofs, imaginatively designed with two slopes of unequal pitch and depth. Long elevations below roof slopes and minor elevations below gables. Integral garage. The uphill or road front has a closed appearance. The windows extend the full length of the first floor, where the reception rooms have been placed to take advantage of the views downhill. The 4 in the south-east corner with balconies and windows facing east and the remaining on the west of the site have westerley views over open countryside.

Group Value

All 29 houses form a homogeneous group, divided into sub types A, B, C and D

Landmark Status

Some of the houses are above the level of the central green and an important view of the conservation area is from the railway.

n/a

09 May 2022