Mid 19th century former house and school building, Croydon House, The Walden School (EHER 81119)
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Summary
Croydon House, formerly Flint House (1840-1930) was acquired by The Walden School (EHER 81116) on it's 50th anniversary and reopened as the Junior School in 1930. Owing to plans for two-stream education, the school was closed in 1946 and the building was instead given over for use as classrooms and accommodation, and renamed Croydon House. In 1994 it was entirely converted to accommodation for the school's sixth form. The name preserves the school's heritage and harks back to an earlier site at Croydon.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred TL 5388 3774 (19m by 23m) |
|---|---|
| Civil Parish | SAFFRON WALDEN, UTTLESFORD, ESSEX |
Type and Period
- HOUSE (Mid 19th century to Early 20th century - 1840 AD (once between) to 1930 AD (once between))
- JUNIOR SCHOOL (Early 20th century to Mid 20th century - 1930 AD (once between) to 1946 AD (throughout))
- CLASSROOM (Cold War to Late 20th century - 1946 AD (once between) to 1994 AD (throughout))
- OFFICE (Cold War to Late 20th century - 1946 AD (once between) to 1994 AD (throughout))
- DORMITORY (Cold War to Late 20th century - 1946 AD (once between) to 1994 AD (throughout))
- DORMITORY (Late 20th century to 21st century - 1994 AD (throughout) to 2017 AD (throughout))
Description
June 2023. Heritage assessment.
The Walden School’s 50th anniversary (see EHER 81116) was marked by the acquisition of Flint House (built in 1840) which was redeveloped and opened as the Junior School at a cost of £1,920, raised through donations. The building was extended, and the extension designed by Johns& Slater of Ipswich. It was opened in 1930 but was short-lived owing to plans for two-stream education and closed in 1946 when it was renamed Croydon House. As Croydon House, it was further extended by Kenneth Bayes and used for domestic science and needlework teaching, with a mistresses’ study on the ground floor and bedrooms for girls on the first floor. From 1994 it was used as accommodation for sixth formers.
The older part of Croydon House comprises a two-storey building of flint-walling and brick with a low-pitched slate roof over with angular ridge and hip tiles and lead valley gutters. The extension is red brick with a colonnade front (facing East), external wall and a flat roof with a felt finish. The join between the two phases is clearly evident in the West façade. Internally, both phases of Croydon House comprise a series of small bedrooms, bathrooms and a kitchen. The older part retains original sash windows, four panel doors, door surrounds and some fireplaces as well as the balustrading of the original stairs.
The Walden School belongs to the Religious Society of Friends’ (Quakers) schools, established from the early 1700s. It follows three London sites; a first school situated within the Workhouse at Clerkenwell (1702), a quadrangle plan, site at Islington Road (1786) and a third school at Croydon (1825). Croydon House commemorates this heritage in its name, as well as features such as the clock and gates removed from the Croydon site following its destruction in WWII. <1>
Sources
- <1> SEX76203 Building Recording Report: ACD Environmental. 2023. Former Friends’ School, Saffron Walden, Essex: Historic Building Recording Report.