Following World War II there was an urgent need for additional housing. One initiative was to build houses from reclaimed materials, making use of ex-military hardware combined with pre-fabricated parts that could help with rapid and low-skilled construction.
A design for a house which included pre-fabricated concrete columns and panels reinforced with tubing from the frames of military vehicles was produced by Sir Edwin Airey.
Church Lawford was one of the sites chosen for these houses, and a “greenfield” site on the lane towards Kings Newnham was chosen, it was opposite where the Council Houses had been built between the wars.
As early as 1990 the Council began to debate the future of the Airey Houses, and by 1994 these discussions had become louder. There were those who had lived in them for so many years that were opposed to their demolition, but an inherent fault had been detected which meant the houses would not last too far into the future. In 1996 the Airey Houses were demolished and many of the long-term residents were moved into new homes in Fitzalan Close.
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