Stevenage Clock Tower is a

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

structure in Town Square in the centre of Stevenage New Town. A panel on the tower records the visit of

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

in 1959. The queen unveiled it as part of the ceremony to open the first phase of the town centre. Designed by Leonard Vincent, the architect of Stevenage Development Corporation, the tower is 19 meters high. It is constructed of

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete (RC), also called reinforced cement concrete (RCC) and ferroconcrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having hig ...

with granite cladding. The fact that the concrete is not exposed gives the design a modernist rather than

brutalist Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by Minimalism (art), minimalist constructions th ...

appearance. It has been described as "iconic". A bronze

relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

sculpture by

Franta Belsky František Bělský (also known as Franta Belsky; 6 April 1921 – 5 July 2000) was a Czech people, Czech sculpture, sculptor. He was known for large-scale abstract works of public art as well as more iconographic statues and busts of noted ...

has been added to the west face of the clock tower. It depicts

Lewis Silkin Lewis Silkin, 1st Baron Silkin CH (14 November 1889 – 11 May 1972), was a British Labour Party politician. Career Lewis Silkin was born on 14 November 1889 to Abraham and Fanny Silkin, who were Litvak Jews from what was then the Lithuanian ...

, a

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

politician who served as Minister of Town and Country Planning implementing the New Towns Act of 1946 which set up

development corporation Development corporations or development firms are organizations established by governments in several countries for the purpose of urban development. They often are responsible for the development of new suburban areas or the redevelopment of exi ...

s to construct new towns.

Related structures

Structures in Stevenage

The tower is set in a pool with a fountain, which is also protected. The listing in 1998 applied to "clock tower and surrounding raised pool". There are two other listed structures in Town Square, the sculpture "Joy Ride" and a ceramic mural on the former Co-Operative House. Like the tower, these examples of public art were created in the 1950s.

Structures elsewhere

It is reminiscent of other English clock towers of the mid-20th century, such as the earlier

Chrisp Street Market Clock Tower Chrisp Street Market Clock Tower is a Grade II listed landmark located in Market Square, Chrisp Street, Poplar. It was designed by the architect Frederick Gibberd as part of the Lansbury Estate for the Festival of Britain, 1951. The clock tower ...

and the later example in Shipley.

Conservation and regeneration

In the 21st century a need has been identified to regenerate Stevenage town centre. Proposals include more housing and updated shops. While this is unlikely to affect the Clock Tower directly, there is a possible threat to the character of the surrounding buildings. Town Square is included in a

Conservation Area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

, but Historic England regards it as vulnerable and in 2017 included it on the

Heritage at Risk Register An annual ''Heritage at Risk Register'' is published by Historic England. The survey is used by national and local government, a wide range of individuals and heritage groups to establish the extent of risk and to help assess priorities for actio ...

References

{{reflist, 40em Clock towers in the United Kingdom Grade II listed buildings in Hertfordshire Concrete buildings and structures