Market Estate is a

public housing Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, def ...

estate consisting of 271

flats Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...

and

maisonettes An apartment (American English), or flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that occupies part of a building, generally on a single story. There are ...

situated to the north of

Caledonian Park The London Borough of Islington is short of large parks and open spaces, given its status in recent decades as a desirable place of residence. In fact, Islington has the lowest ratio of open space to built-up areas of any London borough. The larg ...

in the

London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough in Inner London. Whilst the majority of the district is located in north London, the borough also includes a significant area to the south which forms part of central London. Islington has ...

. It is named after the

Metropolitan Cattle Market The Metropolitan Cattle Market (later Caledonian Market), just off the Caledonian Road in the parish of Islington (now the London Borough of Islington) was built by the City of London Corporation and was opened in June 1855 by Prince Albert. ...

which operated on the site until the 1960s. After slaughter the carcasses of cattle and sheep were sent by underground trains to

Smithfield Market Smithfield, properly known as West Smithfield, is a district located in Central London, part of Farringdon Without, the most westerly ward of the City of London, England. Smithfield is home to a number of City institutions, such as St Bartho ...

to be traded. Three of the six blocks that make up the estate are named after breeds of animal that were traded in the market: Tamworth (pigs), Kerry (cows) and Southdown (sheep). The remaining three blocks are called the Clock tower blocks after the market's clock tower which still stands in

. This contains a working clock used as a prototype for the mechanism of

Big Ben Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the Great Clock of Westminster, at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England, and the name is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and the clock tower. The officia ...

History

The estate was built by the

Greater London Council The Greater London Council (GLC) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area. The GLC was dissolved in 198 ...

(GLC) who purchased the site from the Corporation of London, who had run the market. It was completed in 1967 to a design by architects Farber & Bartholomew. Although flats are relatively large (having been built in accordance with the then new Parker Morris standards), the estate became run down, neglected and plagued by anti-social behaviour. The redevelopment of nearby Kings Cross probably contributed to a growing

drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...

and

prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...

problem in and around the estate as activity was displaced from Kings Cross. A multimillion-pound

UK Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

and

Islington London Borough Council Islington London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Islington in Greater London, England. The council was created by the London Government Act 1963 and replaced two local authorities: Finsbury Metropolitan Borough Co ...

investment in the 1990s failed to stop the decline. Walkways connecting the blocks were mainly removed,

gardens A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

created for most ground floor flats, and

closed-circuit television camera A closed-circuit television camera can produce images or recordings for surveillance or other private purposes. Cameras can be either video cameras, or digital stills cameras. Walter Bruch was the inventor of the CCTV camera. The main purpose o ...

s linked to a

concierge A concierge () is an employee of a multi-tenant building, such as a hotel or apartment building, who receives guests. The concept has been applied more generally to other hospitality settings and to personal concierges who manage the errands of ...

in an onsite office installed. The concierge's office was burnt out and the CCTV system vandalised. It was not replaced. Hyde Northside were given the management of the estate in 2001. Following the death of a young boy on the estate, Christopher Pullen, when a security door fell on him, residents set up the Market Estate Tenants and Residents Association (METRA), demanding that the estate's fundamental problems be resolved. Following several years of discussions, it was agreed that the estate needed complete

redevelopment Redevelopment is any new construction on a site that has pre-existing uses. It represents a process of land development uses to revitalize the physical, economic and social fabric of urban space. Description Variations on redevelopment include: ...

. Islington Council decided that the only way of bringing in the necessary funding to do this would be to invite a

housing association In Ireland and the United Kingdom, housing associations are private, Non-profit organization, non-profit making organisations that provide low-cost "Public housing in the United Kingdom, social housing" for people in need of a home. Any budge ...

to take the estate over in a stock transfer. Hyde Northside failed to be selected by the residents and Southern Housing Group was chosen from a short list by METRA representatives in 2003. After nearly 18 months of further discussions between residents, Islington Council, the office for the

deputy prime minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

(ODPM), Southern Housing Group and their masterplan architects, Watkins Gray International, over 80% of the secure

tenants A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to hold land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord. Although a tenant does hold rights to real property, a l ...

on the estate voted on whether to transfer the estate and their tenancies to Southern Housing Group, with over 85% voting in favour. Under the agreement the whole estate was demolished and replaced by a mixture of

houses A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

and small blocks of modern low rise flats, built on a traditional

street A street is a public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, ...

pattern to Watkins Gray International's masterplan. The contractor on this project was Higgins Construction. Existing secure tenants were guaranteed a new home on the new development if they wanted it, and 90 additional homes for sale and

shared ownership Equity sharing is another name for shared ownership or '' co-ownership''. It takes one property, more than one owner, and blends them to maximize profit and tax deductions. Typically, the parties find a home and buy it together as co-owners, but so ...

will also be built to help cross-subsidise the costs of building tenants' new homes. Caledonian Park was scheduled for improvement as part of the scheme. Work on the new homes started in early 2005, significant improvements were made to Caledonian Park beginning in 2006 including planting new trees and redoing all the paths. The last remaining residents moved out of the old Market Estate blocks in February 2010. The York Way Estate alongside has frontages to York Way and Market Road, set behind lawns and trees. It was built by the

Corporation of London The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the municipal governing body of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United King ...

on part of the market site they retained after the market closure and is sometimes assumed to be part of the Market Estate, with which it is contemporary. It was built to the designs of McMorran & Whitby architects. Managed directly by the

it has not suffered the poor maintenance and social breakdown of the Market Estate and remains essentially as built.

The Market Estate Project

Following the closure of the old blocks, the Market Estate Project invited 75 artists, designers and the residents of the estate, to work together in flats left behind, corridors, staircases and building facades. Work was developed over a number of months, culminating in a one-day event on 6 March 2010 which invited the public to explore the art works created on site, just before the demolition bulldozers moved in. The project was developed as a partnership between

Southern Housing Group Southern Housing Group is an among the largest and oldest housing associations in the UK, managing 30,000 homes for over 77,000 residents in London and the south east of England. History Southern Housing Group began as the Samuel Lewis Housing Tr ...

and TallTales, a London-based art practice which focuses on working with artists in areas undergoing development. An estimated 2500 people attended the day, which was described by British artist

Anthony Gormley Sir Antony Mark David Gormley (born 30 August 1950) is a British sculptor. His works include the ''Angel of the North'', a public sculpture in Gateshead in the north of England, commissioned in 1994 and erected in February 1998; ''Another Pl ...

as a "joy and delight".

References

External links

METRA website

Caledonian Park Friends group website
{{coord, 51.548, -0.124, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Housing estates in the London Borough of Islington