Gad’s Hill, Kent

AHP and Clague Architects were commissioned by the governors of Gad’s Hill School to provide a conservation plan for this grade I listed house, the former country home of Charles Dickens. Unusually, the study where the author wrote Great Expectations, Our Mutual Friend, A Tale of Two Cities and The Mystery of Edwin Drood (which remained unfinished when Dickens suffered a fatal stroke at Gad’s Hill in 1870) remains much as he left it.

The current use of the house as a school presents particular conservation problems: the original house was not designed to accommodate classroom desks in each room, or allow for large numbers of people using the main stairs every day. And yet, the internal fabric is of unusual importance, simply because the rooms are laid out – if not furnished – as Dickens knew them: it is principally because of the connection with Dickens that the house is afforded the highest statutory protection possible.

AHP used primary and secondary sources in Kent and London to provide a history of the house, built in 1779, and a catalogue of alterations, including those made by Dickens when he bought it in 1856. The report also provided an analysis of the building’s significance, including an appraisal of more recent structures in the grounds.

As well as an historic understanding and significance assessment, conservation plans provide a framework of issues affecting a historic site, and formulate a set of policies designed to assist in its restoration. At Gad’s Hill, the most pressing issue is that related to the future use of the house. The framework provided by AHP and Clague Architects should prove a vital part of the process to ensure a sustainable new use for the house.

Public

Middlesbrough Town Hall, Cleveland ›
Congress Theatre, Eastbourne ›

Ecclesiastical

Whalley Abbey, Lancashire ›
Ironmonger Row Baths, London ›

Commercial

Regent Street, London ›
Watermen’s Hall, London ›

Military

Dymchurch Redoubt, Kent ›
Carlisle Castle, Cumbria ›

Industrial

Transporter Bridge, Middlesbrough ›
Nantyglo Round Towers, South Wales ›

Country

Gad’s Hill, Kent ›
Sundridge Park, Bromley ›