Latitude: 51.4042 / 51°24'15"N
Longitude: -0.7544 / 0°45'15"W
OS Eastings: 486738
OS Northings: 167974
OS Grid: SU867679
Mapcode National: GBR D7V.VFN
Mapcode Global: VHDX3.WY1Y
Plus Code: 9C3XC63W+M6
Entry Name: Point Royal
Listing Date: 22 December 1998
Grade: II
Source: Historic England
Source ID: 1390361
English Heritage Legacy ID: 489344
ID on this website: 101390361
Location: Easthampstead, Bracknell Forest, Berkshire, RG12
County: Bracknell Forest
Civil Parish: Bracknell
Built-Up Area: Bracknell
Traditional County: Berkshire
Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Berkshire
Church of England Parish: Easthampstead
Church of England Diocese: Oxford
Tagged with: Architectural structure
EASTHAMPSTEAD
SU86NE RECTORY LANE, The Green
674-1/9/304 Nos.1-102 (Consecutive)
Point Royal
II
18 storey point block with circular partly underground parking
garage. 1961-64. Designed by Philip Dowson and Derek Sugden of
Arup Associates. Reinforced concrete, partly precast and
partly in situ. 102 flats above ground floor entrance podium.
Irregular split hexagon plan, with 6 flats on each floor,
central lift lobby, and ground floor entrance, now altered,
recessed beneath block above. Circular ground floor terrace
above ha-ha, beneath which is the basement garage, open at the
sides. The car park and ground floor are constructed in
board-marked shuttered reinforced in situ poured concrete with
sloping brick outer sides to the ha-ha. The detailing
emphasises the modelling potential of the material, with
features such as rainwater gargoyles, circular columns, slab
support walls, and splayed soffits treated with visual
consistency. Above the ground floor, the block rises above a
cantilevered reinforced concrete slab, with reinforced
concrete supporting walls, reinforced concrete floors and
roof, and an outer exposed precast reinforced concrete frame,
behind which are set back the outer walls of the flats.
Between the outer wall and the frame there is a narrow escape
gallery, giving perimeter access to the single staircase in
the centre of the north side of the block. Generous glazing to
each flat, originally precast mullions with vertically sliding
and top hung softwood sashes, now altered.
The block was refurbished a few years ago, with total
replacement of the glazing in upvc. The precast handrail units
have been replaced by a deeper enclosed dark-green-coated
metal and glazed balustrade. On the ground floor the entrance
has been brick-clad and enlarged to improve security. The open
sides of the parking garage below the ha-ha have been closed
with galvanised steel security fencing. The podium now
includes a small gezebo to house an escape stair from the
garage. While these changes have affected the appearance and
character of the building, they are comparatively minor, and
have not fundamentally compromised its integrity. The block is
notable for its bold sculptural form and integrated design and
also for the precise and refined quality of the pre-cast
external frame. Point Royal has strong landmark character in
Bracknell and the landscaping around it reinforces this. It is
one of the most distinctive architectural features in any of
the English New Towns.
(Architects Journal: 13 May 1964: 1099-1112).
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