Ickburgh School, Ickburgh Road, E5

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This prototype school building for disabled children was designed by Foster Associates in 1972. It was the result of a research project undertaken by the Spastics Society. Foster Associates visited a number of older institutions, which had been used for the education of disabled children. The results of this research culminated in the publication of a design guide published by the Spastics Society, and the building of a prototype to test out ideas. The Spastics Society approached a number of London boroughs to see if a site could be donated. The building is a long, single-storey steel-framed building with a protruding covered roof deck. The building resembles an industrial shed and is constructed from corrugated steel. Oversized windows run the length of the building. The design incorporates a central service core running the length of the building, which helps to create a barrier between the public and private areas. This is surrounded by large, flexible areas with moveable screens and glass partitions.

High-tech

Post-war (1945-2000)

school

Sir Norman Foster (1935-present day) is one of Britain’s leading and most prolific English architects. Foster and Partners was established as Foster Associates in 1967.
His first notable building was the Willis Building in Ipswich (1975). Since then his practice has gone on to design many iconic structures around the world, including the HSBC Building in Hong Kong (1985), the American Air Museum in Duxford (1998) and 30 St Mary Axe in London (2003). He with Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, Sir Terry Farrell and Sir Richard Rogers are leading pioneers of the British High-Tech movement. Ickburgh School is a very early example of his work and is a modest, but well-preserved, forerunner to his later prolific and dazzling architectural career. The school was also his first non-commercial building that uses materials and detailing previously utilised in an industrial context.