St Agnes Close
London E9
Architect: Cousins & Cousins
Register for similar homes"Positioned on the south-western tip of Victoria Park, the development is renowned for its sharp angular glazing and its wonderful tiered, brickwork exterior."
Designed in 1966 by John Spence & Partners on behalf of the Crown Estate, this expansive three-bedroom apartment has been recently refurbished by Cousins & Cousins architects. Completed in 1969, St Agnes Close is formed of seventeen apartments, positioned on the south-western tip of Victoria Park. The development is renowned for its sharp angular glazing and its wonderful tiered, brickwork exterior.
The apartment is accessed by a triple-height, glass-fronted communal staircase, leading up to the first floor. Internally, Cousins & Cousins have ingeniously created an expansive living quarters which exploits the roof terrace as an extra room, drawing excellent levels of natural light across the entirety of the apartment.
The master bedroom and en-suite bathroom form a kind of ‘island’ around which all additional rooms can flow. Access to a bright, south-facing roof terrace is gained through the master bedroom and also through glazed sliding doors in the open-plan living room. Further accommodation is arranged across an additional two bedrooms, a family bathroom and an open-plan kitchen and dining room.
The apartment comes with its own garage. There is also free parking for residents throughout the estate.
St Agnes Close is well served by good and outstanding primary and secondary schools, including Lauriston Primary School and Mossbourne Victoria Park.
The estate is positioned on the very edge of Victoria Park and is also a short walk from London Fields. The excellent E5 Bakehouse, Noble Fine Liquor and Ginger Pig butchers are all within a ten-minute walk, as are the many shops, restaurants and pubs of Victoria Park Village and Broadway Market.
The closest stations are London Fields and Cambridge Heath, both of which run services to Liverpool Street in approximately ten minutes. Bethnal Green tube station is a 20-minute walk away and connects citywide via the Central line.
Tenure: Leasehold
Lease Length: approx. 151 years
Service Charge: approx. £1,696 per annum.
Please note that all areas, measurements and distances given in these particulars are approximate and rounded. The text, photographs and floor plans are for general guidance only. The Modern House has not tested any services, appliances or specific fittings — prospective purchasers are advised to inspect the property themselves. All fixtures, fittings and furniture not specifically itemised within these particulars are deemed removable by the vendor.
History
John Spence and Partners were commissioned by the Crown Estate to design affordable housing for an area in East London once occupied by a church but had been badly damaged by bombing during World War II. The resulting Christchurch Estate is an outstanding development, comprising 149 homes in low rise blocks of mixed sizes. The hope was that the development would allow local people working in essential public services to live close to work and provide housing for all types of modern family – small and large. St Agnes Close was part of the first phase to be completed, with the third and final being finished in 1977.
The Crown Estate did not have the budget restrictions that applied to many local authorities and the design was intended to echo the existing Victorian street patterns nearby. Although the buildings have concrete frames, they are faced with warm toned brick and simple wooden windows that sensitively embed the buildings within their traditional surroundings. The estate is laid out around a series of courtyards and lush gardens of trees, shrubs, and grasses that that encourage a sense of community. These shared spaces are connected by complex and well-planned landscaping that successfully separates pedestrians and traffic. The Christchurch Estate is much admired for its discreet combination of housing types along with elegant use of brick and concrete.
