Heritage Open Day 9th September 2006

On 9th September I visited a 14th century church called All Saints, located in Horndon on the Hill, Essex. It was open to the public to allow them to explore the church and its grounds and to talk to the church historian. I was really interested in the structure as it was so old.

There are still the original wooden beams dating back to the 1300's as well as the red bricks, stone floors and the steep wooden staircases. Some original features have been changed inside at many stages, but have always been retained by either reusing them or burying them so nothing has been lost from the historical building.

The Victorians had restored the plastered walls inside, which formed the nave. The wooden banaster surrounding the Alter had also been moved to the 1st floor to form the balcony, where the local bigwigs sat high up for the 3-4 hour long service away from the common locals.

The first week of my work experience is complete. I have been taken to several sites in Brentwood that need to be deveoped. An 'Open Space Stratagy' needs to be drawn up in order to aid the development of the sites. This past week I have drawn up plans for an unused piece of ground bordering a block of flats. Residents wanted this area to be transformed into a space that could be used by everyone, such as a small garden.

Clements Park is another site I am working on. The site was previously the grounds of Warley Hospital however, most of it has now been developed into residential homes. I am currently drawing plans for a grassed area situated between the large baseball pitch and the new appartments set in the 1819 red brick Hospital. I have realised that when designing for a Council, I have to design open spaces that will encourage the minimum amount of anti-social behaviour as possible. Since spending a year at university proposing imaginative and innovative designs, I have realised that the reality of these fun designs may not work in the real world, depending on the location.