Photo: Stephen Hartland
The Society is concerned that Birmingham City Council’s current financial situation is preventing it from intervening to prevent the continuing deterioration of listed heritage in the city.
The Society’s Birmingham and West Midlands Group stresses that something has to be done immediately to stop the continuing decline of the magnificent conservatory at The Corinthians on 96 Bristol Road in Birmingham. The building has been occupied by Optimax Laser Eye Clinic for many years and the conservatory is now derelict.
The Corinthians is a fine Grade II listed, white stucco villa, built in 1850 with a statement conservatory attached to the side of the building. The condition of the hot house has led to the Society writing to the Principal Conservation Officer at Birmingham City Council, to confirm that an urgent works notice is being issued in relation to this key element of the building in an important conservation area.
The Birmingham conservatory, on the historic Calthorpe Estate, was constructed at the same time as the Crystal Palace in London and even before the world-famous Kew Gardens glasshouses were finished, when such buildings were all the rage for the affluent upper and middle classes. The Corinthians’ glass house exhibits many fine features of the genre including a steep-pitched roof and triangular shape, which efficiently drains rainwater while creating a high and airy interior, arched windows feature large panes of glass to maximise the natural light and allow a connection between interior and exterior; the glazing includes rich stained glass panels in hues of purple and yellow. The conservatory would have featured plants such as palms, ferns, and other exotics being brought to Britain by the intrepid Victorian plant hunters.
Stephen Hartland, Chair, the Birmingham and West Midlands Group of the Victorian Society said, “The current financial plight of the City Council and restrictions on spending imposed by the Commissioners may account for inaction by the Council, but statutory functions relating to conservation and our built heritage must not be ignored for short term financial gain and I call upon the Council to issue an Urgent Works Notice under Section 48 Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 without delay.”
