Hunstanton School
The Smithdon High School (formerly known as Hunstanton Secondary Modern School) is an early building designed by the architects Peter and Alison Smithson, built between 1949 and 1954 and of international architectural significance and a quite extraordinarily radical building to have been commissioned in north-west Norfolk. It is a Grade II* listed building.
Hunstanton School epitomised the architectural experimentation of post-war Britain, as well as the growing acceptance of modernism by the public authorities. It caused excitement in the architectural profession, and was widely praised for its intelligent layout and formal elegance. The Smithsons deliberately left many of the service elements of the school exposed, making a feature of the water tank by turning it into a tower. The disposition, steel frames and panels of brick and glass most obviously echoed the work of Mies Van Der Rohe at MIT Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
The school's design has posed problems for the generations of schoolchildren who have been educated there. The extent of glass wall and thermally unbroken construction allowed natural light to flood into the classrooms as intended, but has led to the building experiencing uncomfortably warm conditions in the summer and low temperatures in the winter.
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