1-16 Brooke Court

Courtyard development of four blocks of flats built in 1954-5 by architect Eric Lyons for Bargood Estates Ltd, subsequently Span Developments Ltd. Geoffrey Paulson Townsend acted as developer, with G Scoble as project architect and Wates as builders.

The development comprises Nos. 1-4, Nos. 5-8, Nos. 9-12 and Nos. 13-16, arranged around a courtyard on the site of a former nursery. The existing trees were retained as part of the layout. Construction uses brick cross- and partition walls, concrete floor slabs, 'Eternit' block and tile hanging to facades, and flat felted roofs. Each block has two brick stacks. All blocks are two storeys.

Nos. 1-4 form a rectangular block of six bays set at the south end of the courtyard, abutting Nos. 4-6 Marlowe Court. Nos. 5-8 abut the other end of Marlowe Court and are set back from Nos. 9-12. Nos. 13-16 close the courtyard at right angles, also of six bays, while the other blocks are of five bays.

All blocks feature horizontal strip timber windows set in threes between projecting exposed crosswalls, with variations to reduce overlooking. Nos. 1-4 has an entrance in the third bay from the east, with large plate glass windows to the right of the entrance divided by a horizontal panel. Adjacent bays have two deeper windows divided at sill level with window boxes, alternating with blind lights. The south facade has a ground floor entrance, vertical two-light staircase window to first floor, and louvres to both storeys, with mirrored composition about the centre. Paved ground and first floors have steel balustrades with timber panels to the first flight and landing, and green glass to store doors.

Nos. 5-8 features similar glazing with the west bay of the south facade blind, replaced by square windows in each storey at the west end with an 'Eternit' panel between. Paved ground and first-floor landings have brown-red terrazzo stairs, steel balustrades with timber panels, and green glass to store doors. Nos. 9-12 are identical but with a blind bay and end fenestration to the east. The staircase is behind screening timber store with blue glass to store doors. Nos. 13-16 have two deeper windows to each storey either side of the entrance bay on the north front, with alternating blind lights in other bays. The rear elevation is mirrored around the centre, with a staircase similar to Nos. 5-8 but with blue glass. No. 13 has a French window on the west side.

Interiors originally featured wood floors and some included sliding partitions, though they have not been formally inspected.

Brooke Court represents one of the most complex courtyards in the Parkleys Estate, the first, largest and perhaps most influential of Eric Lyons's developments for Span. The scheme was the first mature work of the partnership between Lyons and Geoffrey Townsend following their renewal after wartime service, and their first as Span Developments Ltd. The development was laid out as a series of cul-de-sacs and pedestrian quadrangles with a distinctive combination of two and three-storey blocks using brick and tile hanging, materials subsequently repeated in later Span works, particularly at Blackheath. The design combined traditional materials in a modern manner to create a humane environment at relatively high densities of approximately eighty persons per acre.

Parkleys was developed for first-time buyers and Span was among the first companies to promote the endowment mortgage. The development pioneered Span's system of residents' management companies which has preserved most of their developments in exceptional condition. Each leaseholder contributes to funding paid maintenance staff and participates in the management company running the estate. Lyons was recognised for bridging the gap between speculative work and the creativity found in the public sector, with the necessity of designing for the same cost as a standard builder's scheme while maintaining architectural quality.