Joshua Abbott has launched a crowdfunding campaign to publish Modernism Beyond Metro-land, a book documenting 20th-century architecture in London’s suburbs. In the second of a series of extracts, the spotlight is on Wanstead Library. Photo by Geoff Wilkinson
Wanstead was part of Essex until 1965 when it became part of the new London Borough of Redbridge. From 1945, Essex County Council instigated a large library building programme overseen by their chief architect HC Connolly, building new facilities all over the county. However, by the late 1960s, Redbridge began a new wave of library construction, often creating buildings that combined health, educational and advice services.
Wanstead Library was opened in 1969 on a site next to Christ Church Green, replacing a smaller branch library from 1944 on the High Street. The new building was designed by the Architects Department of Redbridge Council, at the time led by Michael G Booth, with the job overseen by D Meyer and B Etteridge.
At first glance, the 1969 library might be dismissed as a typical post-war piece of municipal architecture, a mixture of jutting shapes and sharp angles in dark brick. However, if we look closer, we can see it is in fact an interesting and thoughtful piece of design. The building fits into a small plot between Spratt Hall Road and Woodbine Place with facades facing west and north. To ensure a regular and even source of natural light, the building is arranged in a rectangular plan with staggered facades at the north and south ends. The northern end is glazed floor to ceiling with thin, vertical window strips, dispersing the light across the library floor. Light is also admitted via a series of triangular roof lights which face north, allowing a soft, even light suitable for reading and study.
Internally, the library was arranged in separate areas for adults, children and reference books, all accommodated in a column-free space under a timber-clad ceiling. Adjoining the library is the Churchill Room, intended as a meeting space for cultural and educational groups, with room for 150 people. The hall also has facilities for cooking, storage, offices and changing rooms. The library and hall were opened on 4 October 1969 by Patrick Jenkin, the then Conservative Member of Parliament for Wanstead and Woodford. The library and the adjoining Churchill meeting rooms were refurbished in 2017.
For more information on Modernism Beyond Metro-Land and to support the crowdfunder, visit wnstd.com/mbml
