Brockwell Hall –restoration hit by rising costs

In the last issue of the Magazine we reported on the planned restoration of Brockwell Hall. The pandemic had delayed the scheme. But in the interim building costs have soared, by at least 28%. So the cost of the scheme is now above budget. This does not mean that the scheme will not proceed, but some “value engineering” will be necessary, in other words some parts of the project will not go ahead, at least for the time being. In particular work on the adaptation of the Stable Block for office use will now be restricted to exterior restoration and making it weathertight. The restoration of the Hall itself should not be affected, but since it will not be possible, as had been planned, to accommodate council officers in the Stable Block they will continue to need space in the hall itself. This limits the space available for park volunteers, for meetings and for storing equipment. The involvement of volunteers is an important part of the project and, more generally, public engagement with the many different aspects of the park, particularly in times when access to funds is so tight.

We are told by Brockwell Park Community Partners (BPCP), who have from the start worked very closely with Lambeth and represent the interests of the many stakeholders, that the reductions in the project will not affect the crucial moving of the operational depot from the stable yard to the refurbished Norwood Road site. That is nearing completion. With the depot gone work can then begin on the Hall itself and BPCP tell us this will include the creation of the new Events building, formed by a roofed space in the stable yard.

Costs saving will also see the scale of landscaping improvements around the Hall reduced, but we are told the provision of disabled access, a key aspect of those works, will go ahead.