Welcome to Corringham

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Douglas Stephen & Partners were known for combining their architectural designs with high-tech elements – and Corringham is no exception.

The central oil-fired heating system in the basement was ahead of its time. Each maisonette was fitted with a thermostatically controlled heat-exchange unit in a cabinet that also included a linen and coat cupboard. The cabinet was located between the living room and the internal stairwell. Hot air was circulated through each maisonette using an electric fan. This original heating system was designed to 1960s standards: it aimed to heat the living rooms to a cool 20°C (68°F) and the bedrooms of up-going maisonettes to an even more Spartan 13°C (55°F). In down-going maisonettes, the bedrooms were fitted with electric radiators. The heating plant in the basement also provided hot water. It was replaced in 2016 with a more powerful and efficient gas-fired system.

Adjacent to each of the maisonettes' front doors were two service cabinets that could be opened from within the home as well as from the corridor. One was intended for deliveries; the other was meant as a refuse cupboard in which residents could place their bin bags. The block's porter would come and remove them once a day and deposit them in the waste disposal chute that was accessible from each landing in the main stairwell of the building. The bin bags would fall into refuse paladins situated in the basement, which were emptied by Westminster Council. This waste disposal chute was a reference to Le Corbusier's idea that "a house is a machine for living in". It was prominently visible from outside the building and defiantly painted light blue.

The kitchens featured stainless-steel double sinks and mixer taps, large working surfaces made of white Warerite, and a specially designed fan-operated extractor hood with an activated charcoal filter to remove smoke, grease, and cooking smells.

The bathrooms were fitted with mirror-faced wall cabinets and chrome-plated heated towel rails, with "provision being made for an electric shaver outlet". The toilets and bathrooms have air vents opening into ventilation shafts that run vertically through the building. The air extraction fans at roof level are cleverly placed on top of the service column, away from the main building, to avoid ventilator noise in the maisonettes.

Finally, each maisonette has a storage cupboard, either in the basement or adjacent to its front door, and there is space in the underground garage for bicycles and for 24 cars.

 

Corringham, London W2 3EH