Somerstown, Hampshire

Somerstown or Somers Town is a residential area of the city of Portsmouth in the English county of Hampshire. The area was one of the most deprived wards in the city, but since 2012, it has been the subject of a major regeneration initiative.[1]

Council flats in Somerstown
Leamington House, Earlsdon Street, Portsmouth

The area was developed during the 1820s, on land owned by Mr Somers, and was heavily bombed during the Second World War. After the war, the majority of what remained of the area was demolished to make way for social housing to a plan by the then city architect F. Mellor.[2] One pre-war survivor was the Castle Tavern originaly a 19th century private house.[2]

It is a very run down area of the city, due for redevelopment. This inner city neighbourhood has relatively high levels of deprivation while much of its physical fabric is in need of renewal or refurbishment. It is one of the poorest areas in the South of England and has one of the highest rates of unemployment. The area is an integral part of the "Heart of Portsmouth" bid for SRB funding and a Joint Project Board has been established to oversee the preparation of a new physical regeneration plan through continued community involvement.

On 23 June 2017, Portsmouth City Council confirmed that cladding had started to be removed from two Somers Town tower blocks, Horatia House and Leamington House, which had failed safety tests in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire.[3] Both blocks were built in 1964-65 and are 18 storeys tall.[4]

References
  1. "Area Action Plans". www.portsmouth.gov.uk. Somerstown and north Southsea. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  2. O’Brien, Charles; Bailey, Bruce; Pevsner, Nikolaus; Lloyd, David W. (2018). The Buildings of England Hampshire: South. Yale University Press. pp. 530–531. ISBN 9780300225037.
  3. "Cladding removed from two Portsmouth tower blocks". BBC News. 23 June 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
    - "Residents react as work starts to remove cladding from two Somers Town high rises due to fire risks after Grenfell Tower blaze". The News. 23 June 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
  4. "Leamington House". Emporis. Archived from the original on 1 February 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
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