Town Hall

Letchworth Town Hall was constructed between 1934 and 1935 by architects Robert Bennett and Wilson Bidwell. The building is constructed of red brick laid in Flemish bond with stone dressings and a plain tile-covered hipped roof.

The plan is rectangular with slightly projecting wings to the front and rear. The exterior is characterised by a central square clock tower with a pergola above. The main façade features stone string courses at first floor level and a projecting cornice at second floor level. The central entrance comprises a timber panelled door and fanlight with radiating glazing bars, approached by four stone steps and surrounded by a stone frame with a pair of Corinthian pilasters flanking the doorway and a curved pediment with a central boss. Ground and first floor windows have straight segmented brick heads, while second floor windows have arched heads. The projecting wings display central arched windows with glazing bars and stone surrounds, with cast iron balconies on the first floor. Contemporary window frames survive throughout, predominantly vertical sliding sash windows with glazing bars and horns.

The rear elevation features a large central arched stair window (twelve-over-nine lights) and rectangular stair window (nine-over-twelve lights), both vertical sliding sash with horns. A central date plaque inscribed '1935 A D' is positioned above. The central section has a modillion cornice at eaves height. The east and west elevations each contain three windows with no other features.

Internally, the plan-form remains substantially intact. All floors are served by a central stairwell accessed from the rear elevation. The staircase has a simple moulded handrail and is supported on each floor by polished stone Doric columns. Contemporary panelled doors survive throughout the first and second floors with architraves decorated with Tudor rose motifs, along with other original joinery. Ceilings with simple plaster decoration remain, though some are obscured by false ceilings. The Council Chamber on the second floor retains its panelling and displays the Letchworth Coat of Arms.

Bennett and Bidwell were noted local architects who trained with Parker and Unwin, the masterplanners of Letchworth as the first Garden City in 1903. Parker and Unwin's original vision included a cluster of civic buildings around the Town Square, but construction was delayed by the First World War. The Town Hall became the principal civic building realised from this scheme. Both architects designed numerous other listed dwellings in the town as well as other public buildings, including the Broadway Cinema. The Town Hall was occupied by Letchworth Urban District Council until local government reorganisation in 1974. The clock tower was added as a memorial to Charles Ball and was not part of the original design.