What heritage means to you
We are busy in the midst of applying to the National Lottery Heritage Fund for £750k. The school is Grade II listed and has a wealth of history behind it.
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Would you welcome a permanent exhibition, showcasing the history of the hall and neighbourhood? What do you think of launching a dedicated museum of brutalist architecture (the only one in the country!) right in the school grounds?
Take the short survey by 1st August to let us know and support our funding application.
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Eco hall for all
The latest design includes installing an ‘Earth Duct’. This is the most costly ventilation system available but with the least impact on the environment. It works by burying ventilation ducts, conveying fresh outdoor air to a building. The soil surrounding the ducts will warm the ventilation air during the winter and cool the ventilation air during the summer with minimal need for additional heating or cooling systems. This decision was made thanks to a vote by our eco-conscious students, and as part of our role as a signatory of Camden’s School Climate Change Charter. |
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Plans and progress
We have pulled together money from the Greater London Authority, Camden Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy, and donations raised by the School Trust to fund stage 3 of the design phase. This means that we now have a detailed design of our proposals, which our architects have consulted on with school staff, students, governors, parents, and potential users.
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Camden Council have also confirmed that the listed hall has the full planning permission and listed building consent required for the work required. This achievement received a round of applause from the attendees to the project’s Open Evening, which was held in and around the hall on 8 July 2021. Thank you to those of you who attended – we look forward to seeing you again at future events.
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Orchestra in residence
In the meantime, our partnership with Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment continues to blossom. The OAE moved in during the pandemic and we haven’t looked back since!
The Orchestra share the Assembly Hall space with the students and recent projects have included Musical Connections with a group of Additional Educational Needs students, GCSE Music Encounter Sessions and collaboration at the Acland Burghley Dystopia/Utopia Dance Show in which a duet between a Y11 dancer and an OAE violinist was a highlight of the show.
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The exceptional Rameau dance project was a collaboration between the OAE and GCSE dance students, and was filmed exclusively in the hall.
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We are also expanding the work of the partnership to benefit the local community beyond our students. The Moon Hares opera that took place in September included students from local primary schools. Look out for more opportunities to get involved!
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Live at the Hex
The OAE Young Producers club is also going from strength to strength and culminated in the first live event on 13 May in which the Assembly Hall was rechristened ‘The Hex’ due to its hexagonal shape. The evening showcased live multi-genre music and was planned, devised and run entirely by the student group. Next Live at the Hex is on 21 October – watch this space!
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Partnership with Urban Learners
We are delighted that we have started working with Urban Learners to develop plans to establish a museum of brutalist architecture in the hall (and online), and to deliver heritage activities as part of our Community, Heritage, and Arts Programme to students, families and the local community.
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This partnership is strengthening our approach involving more people in the heritage of the hall, its architecture, the school, and the local community, and we look forward to bringing you more information on this in due course.
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What’s next
Despite these success stories, the current layout of the Assembly Hall continues to have poor acoustics, a staging area without changing facilities, no accessible toilets, and limited access to the unique amphitheatre outside, which also requires renovation as part of the project.
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Our plans would see the hall become one of the most versatile and high-tech theatre spaces in London with innovative new staging, seating, lighting and sound. A space with gallery facilities would support both temporary and permanent art and museum displays, and place the Assembly Hall once again at the heart of the community as envisaged by its original designers in 1966.
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Many of you previously expressed an interest in getting involved in the Community-Led Management Board, which we will be establishing to oversee the running of the Hall for All and the development and delivery of the Community, Heritage, and Arts Programme of activities that will be on offer in the hall to the local community. We will be in touch to progress this in due course. Watch this space!
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