A century of homes fit for heroes
Phyllis Stephen meets residents of Northfield, first established 100 years ago as a model housing scheme fit for heroes
The original houses built by the council in Northfield in east Edinburgh are 100 years old. And while no celebrations could mark the centenary, due to Covid, there are plans afoot. In Gifford - Buildings of Scotland, the housing is described as: “To the N of Willowbrae Road two large areas of housing. First NORTHFIELD, mainly three-storey blocks designed and laid out for the City by Fairlie, Reid & Forbes after a competition held in 1919. The neutral colour of harled walls is relieved with red brick and red tiles. Rubble walls here and there, e.g.at Northfield Gardens and Nos. 53-57 Northfield Broadway, where both design and composition are outstanding.”
Steven Robb, Deputy Head of Historic Buildings at Historic Environment Scotland, has written extensively on the subject of housing, from the 19th century slum clearances of the Old Town and the Southside with the help of town planner, Patrick Geddes, to the inter-war work of City Architect, Ebenezer MacRae, (also responsible for designing the city’s police boxes). We spoke to Mr Robb about his personal research relating to Northfield, where the development
“successfully mixed tenements, flatted blocks and cottages together in a meandering characterful plan”.
The Housing (Scotland) Act 1919 was introduced to deal with overcrowding and housing shortages. He said: “The government used the act to kickstart the housing industry, and they gave out generous subsidies to councils so that they did not have to put their rates up.”
The Act was known as “Homes fit for
Heroes”, to give those returning from war somewhere to live, and also to improve public health following the mantra a “healthy family in a healthy home”.
The 1911 census proved that Edinburgh had a housing problem. Over 110,000 people lived in either one or two room houses, accounting for 41% of the city’s housing stock, and some 40,000 people lived three to a room.
Mr Robb said that the first housing built after the 1919 Act was the result of an architectural competition for private Midlothian architects, offering four new sites including Northfield with the first families housed in October 1920. The council had bought 40 acres from the Duke of Abercorn at £300 per acre.
In June 1920 architects Fairlie, Reid & Forbes publicly exhibited their “admirable housing scheme” for 322 houses. These three architects only collaborated for the purposes of the competition, but went on to design other notable buildings in the city. Fairlie designed many Catholic churches and the National Library of Scotland on George IV Bridge, while Reid and Forbes were involved in the design of many Edinburgh schools.
Ironically the trio did not even win the competition for Northfield. Other architects, AK Robertson and Thomas Aikman Swan, won the competition for all four sites, but it had already been decided that no one firm would be allowed to design more than two. Robertson and Swan were awarded the sites at Wardie and Craigleith, and Charles
Tweedie was awarded Saughtonhall.
The latter two were later abandoned.
AVOIDING URBAN SPRAWL
Mr Robb said that the council started by building low density schemes with cottages, but then owing to the high cost had to resort to constructing four in a block, or flatted tenements. He pointed out that Edinburgh wanted to avoid “urban sprawl” so they built houses quite close to the city centre and where people worked.
Building costs were high after the war simply because of high demand, but at one time building in brick or stone had cost roughly the same. Steven believes that some of the stone tenements built in Northfield Gardens are the only 1919 Act houses to be categorised as listed. He said: “It’s quite rare to be listed but they were of such high quality, and it was down to the architects who were really good. There is such a variety of housing in Northfield, the architects seem to have really enjoyed themselves.”
From the valuation rolls, Robb discovered a lot of middle class professions represented among residents in the 1920s, rather than any poor people from the slums who needed better housing.
Mr Robb likes the area very much, particularly the fact that it is very green with lots of garden space and open spaces. He said: “I think it is a really good plan, for example it has been designed with cut through lanes. I don’t really like the fact that gardens have been paved over, as it was originally planned as a very green development.”
Northfield is quite a distinct wee area, and from a council housing point of view it was a much soughtafter area
The council had a points system, and you needed lots of points to get a house in Northfield
THE DEPUTE Lord Provost, Joan Griffiths, MBE, is ward councillor for Craigentinny/ Duddingston.
She told us that she has a photo which hangs in her rooms in the City Chambers, which she received from one of her constituents. It shows
Northfield Farm as the area used to be before housing was built.
Cllr Griffiths said: "Lorna Frost contacted me about marking the centenary, and I told her I thought it was a great idea. Northfield is quite a distinct wee area, and from a council housing point of view it was one of the most sought-after areas for a long time. People wanted to live in Northfield. It is a great idea to celebrate it."
ACTOR, WENDY BARRETT and her family have lived in their Northfield Avenue home for 26 years. One of the original dwellings, unusually for Edinburgh and indeed Scotland, it is built of red brick. She said that the thing she likes about the house is that it feels very solid, and that moving from a top floor flat in Easter Road it felt like “a proper house”. Red brick is considered more of an English style. Although it is a “cottage style”, the house has high ceilings and “decent sized rooms” and a large garden. Wendy said: “People wanting to live in the area originally had to meet certain criteria, and many were typically white collar workers. My family is only the third to live in this house.”
FIONA CLARK, a member of the Northfield & Willowbrae Community Council, has lived in Northfield for much of her life. Her parents and two brothers moved in when the house was brand new in June 1967. They had lived in the prefabs in Mountcastle and had to move as these - a form of post-war temporary housing - were being pulled down and residents had to move to Northfield Drive. Her father Duncan, now 90, is the only remaining resident who has lived there since the houses were built. These newer blocks have balconies where Fiona grows herbs. She said that some people don't realise that there are 100 year-old houses in the area. Although she does not live in the older part she explained it was still a sought after area in the 1960s. She said: "You can say the same about the houses built in the sixties - the council had a points system, and you needed lots of points to get a house in Northfield. It was a lovely area when I was growing up - we all played together out in the street from the
Grove and the Drive. While my parents bought their house under Right to Buy, it is perhaps one of the worst things that happened to the area. If it was still solely council homes, then I think this area would be nicer."
DAVE ARMSTRONG is a member of Northfield & Willowbrae Community Council. He explained that it was one of our contributors, Lorna Frost, who first mentioned the centenary at one of their recent virtual meetings. He said: "In the past we would have done something at Northfield Community Centre. Fiona Menzies, who is a graphic designer, plans to turn old Northfield photos into postcards, and the community council is looking at ways of helping with that. We will be discussing it at our next meeting."