Harlow Town Station Including Platform Structures

Harlow Town Station, built between 1959 and 1960, was designed by H.H. Powell, Regional Architect for the Eastern Region of British Railways, with Paul Hamilton as Project Architect, along with John Bicknell and Ian Fraser. The station is a composite structure employing a steel and timber frame, featuring pre-stressed concrete cantilevers that support the concourse roof. The exterior is clad in light grey brick set upon a blue engineering brick plinth, with plywood fascias and extensive plate glass.

The central, double-height station concourse projects above single-storey facilities located on either side. The concourse is connected to the two island platforms via an overbridge that incorporates toilets, a waiting room, and staff facilities. Rising above the bridge are three tall lift rooms constructed from vertical board-marked, fair-faced concrete. The design emphasizes horizontal planes. Flat roofs with prominent projections overhang the concourse and secondary entrances, with the concourse roof having the deepest overhang. Continuous clerestory glazing of varying heights provides light. The undersides of all the canopies, including those over the platforms, are lined with V-jointed, varnished softwood boarding. Internally, the concourse and booking hall walls are finished with pale blue glass mosaic, while the concourse columns are black mosaic.

Under H.H. Powell, the Eastern Region Architect’s Department designed several modern stations alongside the Region's electrification projects, with Harlow Town Station intended as a flagship achievement. The building possesses notable spatial qualities and is considered significant for its architectural design, as noted in reviews at the time of construction.