| Runnymede Civic Centre | |
|---|---|
 The building in 2023 | |
| Location | Station Road, Addlestone |
| Coordinates | 51°22′14″N0°29′27″W / 51.3706°N 0.4908°W |
| Built | 2008 |
| Architect | Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios |
| Architectural style(s) | Modern style |
  Shown in Surrey | |
Runnymede Civic Centre is a municipal building in Station Road in Addlestone, a town in Surrey, in England. The building accommodates the offices and meeting place of Runnymede Borough Council as well as a library and police station.
In the 19th century, Addlestone was a chapelry within the parish of Chertsey. [1] After Chertsey Urban District Council was established in 1894, [2] the new council was initially based in offices on Guildford Street in Chertsey. [3] However, in the late 1950s, the council decided to commission new offices. The site they selected was on open land on the south side of Station Road in Addlestone. [4]
The council offices were designed in the modern style, built in dark brick, and were completed in 1962. The rear part of the building, which had a rather dull appearance on account of the dark colour of the bricks, [5] was supported on stilts and it featured a landscaped garden. [6] [7] The council offices continued to serve as the offices of Chertsey Urban District Council for another 12 years and then became the headquarters of the enlarged Runnymede Borough Council when it was formed in 1974. [8] In the 1980s, during the Cold War, a bunker was established under the building for use in the event of a nuclear attack. [9]
In the early 2000s, the council decided to relocate to a new civic centre, which would incorporate a library and police station, in addition to the council headquarters. Although it was originally planned to sell the old building, the Great Recession of 2008/2009 reduced demand and so the council decided to demolish the structure instead. [10] [11] The site was later occupied by a Waitrose Supermarket and a Premier Inn. [12]
Meanwhile, the council proceeded with the development of its new civic centre on a site immediately to the east of the previous council offices. The new three-storey building was designed by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios in the modern style, built by Willmott Dixon in brick and glass at a cost £12.6 million and was officially opened in 2008. [13] [14] In October 2023, it was announced the roof was leaking and would require replacement. [15]
The ground floor of the facade is fenestrated in plate glass, to make the building's functions visible from the outside. The right-hand section of the first floor is canted forward and supported by a pier at the north west corner: it is clad in alternating sections of clear and coloured glass. Inside, there is a double-height space housing the library and help desks, with consultation rooms behind, and a wide staircase leading to the upper floors. There is a mezzanine floor with a staff cafe, while the first floor contains the council chamber, a drum-shaped space with desks for councillors in three horseshoes. It is lit by a skylight, with a lantern above which, shines a red light when the council is in session on the second floor and remainder of the first floor house offices, as well as the police control room. [16] The design was one of the regional winners for the 2009 RIBA Awards. [17] [18] [19]
The Borough of Runnymede is a local government district with borough status in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Addlestone and the borough also includes the towns of Chertsey and Egham. The borough is named after Runnymede, a water meadow on the banks of the River Thames near Egham, which is connected with the sealing of Magna Carta by King John in 1215.
Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, 18 miles (29 km) south-west of central London. It grew up around Chertsey Abbey, founded in AD 666 by St Erkenwald, and gained a market charter from Henry I. A bridge across the River Thames first appeared in the early 15th century. The River Bourne through the town meets the Thames at Weybridge. The Anglican church has a medieval tower and chancel roof. The 18th-century listed buildings include the current stone Chertsey Bridge and Botleys Mansion. A curfew bell, rung at 8 pm on weekdays from Michaelmas to Lady Day ties with the romantic local legend of Blanche Heriot, marked by a statue of her and the bell at Chertsey Bridge. Green areas include the Thames Path National Trail, Chertsey Meads and a round knoll with remains of a prehistoric hill fort known as Eldebury Hill. Pyrcroft House dates from the 18th century and Tara from the late 20th. Train services are run between Chertsey railway station and London Waterloo by South Western Railway. The town is within the M25, accessible via junction 11. It has a population of 15,967. Dave MacLaren (b.1957) currently holds the title of Lord Chertsey since 2024.
Longcross is a village in the Borough of Runnymede in Surrey, England, approximately 34.6 kilometres (21.5 mi) west of central London. Its name is thought to come from a marker, placed where the parish boundaries of Chertsey, Chobham and Egham met.
Runnymede and Weybridge is a constituency in Surrey represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Ben Spencer, a Conservative.
Addlestone railway station serves the town of Addlestone in the Runnymede District of Surrey, England. It is located on the Chertsey Branch Line and is operated by South Western Railway.
Addlestone is a town in Surrey, England. It is located approximately 18+1⁄2 miles southwest of London. The town is the administrative centre of the Borough of Runnymede, of which it is the largest settlement.
Chertsey and Walton was a late 20th century parliamentary constituency in Surrey which returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.
Chertsey sometimes seen as Surrey North Western, equally the North Western Division of Surrey was created as one of six county constituencies of Surrey for the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. The seat underwent two net reductions and variously included and excluded growing suburban settlements: Egham, Frimley, Weybridge, Walton-on-Thames and Woking.
Ottershaw is a village in the Borough of Runnymede in Surrey, England, approximately 32 km (20 mi) southwest of central London. The village developed in the mid-19th century from a number of separate hamlets and became a parish in its own right in 1871.
The River Bourne or the Chertsey Bourne is in Berkshire and Surrey; it runs from sources in Windsor Great Park and Swinley Forest through to the River Thames.
Jubilee High School is a coeducational secondary school with academy status, located in Addlestone, Surrey, England. The school holds Artsmark Gold Award and International School status.
Woodham is a suburban village in Surrey next to New Haw and contiguous with two suburbs of Woking: Sheerwater and West Byfleet.
Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios is a British architectural design firm, established in 1978, with offices in Bath, London, Manchester and Belfast. The firm is known for its pioneering work in sustainable design and social design agenda.
Accordia is a housing development in Cambridge, England. The 9.5-hectare (23.5-acre) site includes 378 dwellings by Feilden Clegg Bradley Architects, Maccreanor Lavington and Alison Brooks Architects and has been constructed in three phases. The first phase of the development became the first housing development to win the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Stirling Prize in 2008.
The Thorpe Interchange is a large motorway free-flow intersection in Surrey, United Kingdom, connecting the M3 with the M25.
RIBA National Awards are part of an awards program operated by the Royal Institute of British Architects, also encompassing the Stirling Prize, the European Award and the International Award. The National Awards are given to buildings in the UK which are "recognised as significant contributions to architecture" which are chosen from the buildings to receive an RIBA Regional award.
The Old Town Hall is a municipal building in London Road, Chertsey, Surrey, England. The structure, which was the main civic venue for the town, is a Grade II listed building.
Woking Civic Offices is a municipal building in Gloucester Walk, Woking, Surrey, England. It is in use as the headquarters of Woking Borough Council.
Chertsey High School is a co-educational secondary free school located on Chertsey Road in Addlestone, Surrey, England. The school was opened on 6 September 2017, and educates pupils from the age of 11 to 16.
Ellesmere Port Council Offices is a municipal building in Civic Way in Ellesmere Port, a town in Cheshire, in England. The building served as the headquarters of Ellesmere Port and Neston Borough Council but is now disused.