Andrew Wood Court

Route Stop 19

Next Stop -#20 The Cut (Craighall Rd)
Overview Andrew Wood of Largo The Great Michael The Michael’s Armament

An Honoured Name

A new street, Andrew Wood Court, was built to replace the loss of people’s homes in James Street, Ramsay Row and Square, and Smiddy Close as well as some houses on the north side of Main Street as part of the redevelopment programme of Newhaven in the late 60s.

The dwellings shown in red on the 1946 map were all demolished to be replaced around 1970 by the houses of Andrew Wood Court. The orange circles in the 1976 map are communal drying areas for the residents.

Ground-breaking Homes

The houses were built like the other houses on the South side of Main Street to take into account the issues that caused legitimate concerns at the time.

The building line on Main Street was built about three metres from the kerb which allows greater space and light, Each flat had a south-facing balcony to admit sunlight with ground floor flats having a small garden.  The interiors boasted rooms of generous proportions and decent storage space.   Bachelor flats in Andrew Wood Court were constructed on the south side.  These were ground-breaking in concept being the first council-owned examples of their kind.

8_2100 Andrew Wood Court looking south. An access ramp to a garden seating area can be seen being built.

Sir Basil Spence Influences

The appearance of the south side of Andrew Wood Court houses is the same as the other houses on this side of Main Street.  A unique feature, though, is the two circular drying greens situated in the open area formed by the two opposite terraces as shown in the right-hand map in orange. These were a legacy from the Sir Basil Spence plans for the village noted in Route Stop 9 — Great Michael Rise.

Whilst standing at the entrance of the Court. Take notice of the rear of the church building.  More is explained in Route Stop 22 but the low building at the rear is often referred to as the Madras Hall by the locals.

To know about the story behind the street name, please go to the next page.

8_2101 One of the two circular drying greens in Andrew Wood Court, a design idea by Sir Basil Spence.
Previous Stop - #18 Free Fishermen’s HallNext Stop -#20 The Cut (Craighall Rd)