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The West Berkshire Historic Environment Record (HER) is the primary index of the physical remains of past human activity in the unitary authority of West Berkshire Council. Limited elements of the West Berkshire HER are available online via the Heritage Gateway, therefore it is not suitable for use in desk-based studies associated with development, planning and land-use changes, and does not meet the requirements of paragraph 194 of the National Planning Policy Framework (2021: 56). Please read the important guidance on the use of the West Berkshire HER data. For these purposes and all other commercial enquiries, please contact the Archaeology team and complete our online HER enquiry form.



HER Number MWB15915
Record Type Monument
Name World War II housing, Theale - Blossom Square area

Grid Reference SU 641 715
Map Sheet SU67SW
Parish Theale, West Berkshire
Map:Show location on Streetmap

Summary

Second World War housing for local munitions factory workers

Monument Type(s):

Full Description

Research carried out as part of the Defence of Britain project included information about a munitions factory which was built in the early part of the Second World War on the site of the industrial estate off Brunel Road, Theale <1>. The factory was subsequently demolished.

At the same time additional housing for workers was built in blocks of four houses, with flat concrete roofs. The ground floor front rooms of these houses have massive walls up to 15-18 inches thick and made of solid concrete with steel reinforcing bars. These houses are still remaining in Blossom Avenue and Crown Lane in Theale <1>, but had pitched roofs added at a later stage.

A GIS point has been created for these houses at an estimated location on Blossom Avenue. This is shown on the 5th Epoch Ordnance Survey mapping <2> as Blossom Square, with six blocks of four-unit houses along the south side of the open square.

Sources and further reading

<01>Davies, P. 2000. WWII housing in Theale - email correspondence. [Unpublished document / SWB13375]
<02>Ordnance Survey. 1962-1981. Ordnance Survey Epoch 5, 1:2500. 1:2500. 1:2500. [Map / SWB14665]

Related Monuments

MWB3725THEALE VILLAGE (Place)
MWB15990Site of World War II munitions factory, Theale - approximate location (Monument)

Associated Excavations and Fieldwork

  • None recorded