A wooden curiosity among traditional bricks

One of the most prominent features on Ham Street is the line of pristine white cottages towards the Ham Common end of the road and because they grab so much attention it is easy to miss what happens when they end.

On the east side, heading north towards Evelyn Road, the cottages revert to the more common plain brick that dominates large areas of Ham, especially around Ham House. but before they do a little wood construction fills a gap. I presume that it is part of one of the houses either side of it but I do not know which one.

Ham House at peace in its setting

Here Ham House looks ready for a sleep after a busy day entertaining visitors. Those visitors normally spoil this view, in my opinion, so I was pleased to take this picture through the front gates after the house had closed for the day.

The complexity of the house is nicely balanced by the simplicity of the approach to it with the stone path flowing around the lawn and both sides flanked by a lightly decorated wall and geometric hedges. The gravel paths that lead away on both sides hint at the life behind the walls.

A closer look at Ham House

I much prefer the clean back of Ham House to its cluttered front but that does not mean that the front is without merit. I was passing the front recently on an evening walk when the sunlight drew my attention to the house and to the roofline in particular.

This picture is all about light and angles, and that is why I took it.

Experimental classroom at Meadlands Primary School

The experimental classroom at Grey Court School is obvious because is at the front of the school as it faces Ham Street but the similar building at Meadlands Primary School is hidden behind the school. To see it, you have to do what I did and walk down the lane off Lock Road that leads to the pumping station.

I was walking down there to see the progress on the housing being built there and could not resist the temptation to look over the wall. The school grounds look massive and the white pod makes quite an impact even when surrounded by that much grass.

Zooming in reveals more detail on the pod and also gives a better impression of its size.

I have no idea what it is like inside, or how effective it is as a classroom, but I do like the way that it looks. It is striking without being outrageous.

Works at Latch House are finished

I have been following four major construction projects over the last few months and one of them has just completed. The is Latch House off Ham Farm Road.

The approach to the house, and its neighbour, was a tired looking tarmac path that has now been repaired, had new edging added and then covered with fine gravel. It looks very attractive and far more welcoming than what was there before.

The new entrance to the house is attractive too and confirms that it is called Latch House.

The large pillars had solid wooden gate are somewhat less welcoming and successfully hide the ground floor of the house while the small upper floor windows reveal nothing of the house's character. It is now a very large house but its grandeur, or lack of it, is a mystery.

Drilling big holes in Ham Street

I have been watching this plot in Ham Street for some months waiting for the new building to appear and it has been interesting to see the ground being prepared for this. The most recent development brought this most impressive machine to the site.

Clearly it is a drill and it is creating the deep holes required to keep the new building steady on its feet. I do not know the geology of the site but the gravel pits were close by so it is likely that the ground is not very solid. The previous house there was only a bungalow, like its neighbour, possibly for that reason.

Watching the new Ham Glebe rise

One of my regular walks deliberately takes me past Ham Glebe on Church Road so that I can watch the new house taking shape. Works had something of a pause after the foundations were laid in June and then the bright red steel arrived and the house started to take shape.

With the second floor added it is clear how close to the trees that the house will be. A squirrel had certainly noticed that and was noisily throwing nuts on to the first floor as I passed.

Extensions in Burnell Avenue

Burnell Avenue has collected more extensions and refurbishments than most roads and while there are some common themes, such as incorporating the garage and building on top of it, the end result is that all the houses now look different and what was once a row of similar brick houses is now a jumble of shapes and finishes. It is verging on being a mess but I think it has not quite got there yet.

This recent extension and renovation has gone for a more modern look than any of its neighbours and while I generally approve of the design I am a little disappointed in the lack of imagination shown and I think that the blue doors are a colour too far.

Not far away another house is in the early stages of its transformation journey and I will be interested to see how it turns out. Hopefully it will be worth another photo.

T 9 LDU on double-yellows

It would be easy to fill this blog with inconsiderate drivers parking on the double-yellow lines on Ham Parade so that they can shop in Greggs but then that is not really what this blog is about. So it is only when there is something exceptionally bad about the driving or the parking that I include the culprits here.

This time it was the driving. I was crossing the slip-road to get to the Village Supermarket and was still on the slip-road when the van darted into the road and passed unnecessarily close to me and at an unnecessary speed.