Following the Second World War, Hutchesontown was declared a Comprehensive Development Area (CDA) in 1957, in the aftermath of the Bruce Report.[1][2] This called for the mass gentrification of the area which took the form of slum clearance and the replacement of overcrowded, insanitary tenement housing with new homes in high rise tower blocks.[3] The area became almost unrecognisable from its previous appearance, with blocks of tenements swept away along with several Victorian and Edwardian-era churches and civic buildings which in later times would have been considered to be of architectural merit.[4]
Hutchesontown was, in effect, used as a testing ground for similar schemes around the city. It was decided to divide the area into five "zones" which were given to different architects to implement a mixture of different schemes.
Area A – on the northern side of the CDA was devoted to conventional maisonette style housing - today close to the Gorbals Health Centre and Gorbals Sports Centre.[4]
Area B – nowadays known as the Riverside estate, was assigned to architect Robert Matthew (RMJM). The four 18-storey blocks[5][6] – built in 1964 to the distinctive "scissor section" configuration – on the banks of the River Clyde still stand, and are widely regarded as the most successful of the Gorbals high-rises and have received numerous refurbishments in their lifetime.[4][3] The Strathclyde Grain distillery lies directly to the east. After the scheduled demolition of the two remaining Area D towers (see below), these will be the only remaining high rise blocks in the Gorbals.
Area C – was the responsibility of Basil Spence, and became the most infamous of the five schemes.[7][6] The Queen Elizabeth Square blocks encountered numerous structural and social problems, and were demolished in 1993.[4][8][9]
Area D – in the south of the CDA was developed by the newly created Scottish Special Housing Association[10] and consisted of four 24 storey blocks at Caledonia Road (the main bus route through the area between Glasgow and Rutherglen) and an estate of smaller maisonettes and 8-storey "mini-multis".[11][6][3] Two of the towers were demolished in early 2006;[12] the remaining two were refurbished, but in 2020 it was confirmed that they too would be demolished in the near future due to issues with the cladding that was applied in the previous work and the prohibitive cost of remedying these faults.[13][14] Stripping of the external fittings began in mid-2024, and it was announced that the remaining structures would be demolished around a year later.[15] This sector is close to the Oatlands neighbourhood, the Southern Necropolis cemetery[4] and the 'Dixon's Blazes' industrial estate.
Area E – closest to Gorbals Cross and Laurieston, consisted of an estate of twelve seven-storey deck-access blocks and two 24-storey towers at Sandiefield Road, constructed in 1968.[16][6][3] Within a few years, however, the low-rise buildings became badly affected by dampness and condensation problems[17] and were presently declared unfit for habitation; they were finally demolished in 1987.[18] The two towers were condemned in 2010 and were demolished at 14:00 on 21 July 2013.[4][19]
Gallery
River Clyde and Waddell Court towers ('Hutchie B'), 2009
Ballater Street, 2009
Waddell Street, 2013
Modern apartments on the site of Queen Elizabeth Square
19th-century St Francis Church, in 'Hutchie C' area but spared from the wrecking ball, now a community centre, 2012
Caledonia Road towers ('Hutchie D'), 2005, shortly before the demolition of two on right
Gorbals Training Centre, McNeill Street (formerly Hutchesontown Library), 2013
Sandiefield Road towers ('Hutchie E'), 2011
Low-rise Area "E" flats in 1987, shortly prior to demolition
^Wright, Valerie (December 2021). "'Housing Problems … are Political Dynamite': Housing Disputes in Glasgow c. 1971 to the Present Day". Sociological Research Online. 26 (4): 976–988. doi:10.1177/1360780418780038. hdl:1893/30642.
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