Permission has been granted for the demolition of a hut behind Gainford Primary School.
The hut was built in the 1940s to provide extra room for pupils when the school leaving age was raised to 15.
Two buildings, known as Hutted Operation for the Raising of the School leaving Age (HORSA) were built at the time, with the other currently being used as a Scout hut.
A heritage statement submitted with application for its demolition noted that while the building is not listed, the interest in such buildings relates to their “architectural concept and style, social and political context, and rarity value as they were erected as temporary buildings”.
The statement added: “The huts, supplied through the Ministry of Works, were seen as the only way to deal with the immediate challenge of accommodating an extra 400,000 students and avoiding the use of labour much needed to cope with the post war housing crisis”.
The hut was later used as a craft room but is currently used for storage.
A survey of the building was completed in April 2023 which raised concerns.
The statement said: “The craft room is currently used a storage facility for the school and has no electricity, no windows, the concrete walls are spalling, there are holes in the asbestos roof, and asbestos is also found in the flue pipe and toilet cistern.
“Works to repair the building and make it both functional and safe would likely outweigh the costs of demolition.”
Durham County Council’s health and safety team visited a month later and concluded: “Because the School’s HORSA hut is at the end of its life and its asbestos roof is holed in two areas therefore allowing the ingress of water and its concrete walls are spalling in areas, it is now not fit for its current purpose, and it is considered that repairing it is not viable.”
The team recommended the school’s caretaker only enter the hut when absolutely necessary on safety grounds.
The statement concluded that the impact of the loss of the building on Gainford’s conservation area would be negligible, but would have a positive impact improving views of nearby Grade I listed Gainford Hall.
