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• Part L 2010

New Bench Unveiled to Celebrate Crittall

15 March 2010

Braintree's Living Landscapes unveils new bench in Town Centre - to celebrate Crittall Manufacturing Company

A unique steel, circular bench which celebrates the role of Crittall's Windows in the life of Braintree, has been unveiled in the town.

The bench, especially commissioned by Braintree Local Committee's Living Landscapes Project to surround a newly planted semi-mature London plane tree, was officially unveiled on Friday 12th February by special guest, The Hon Mrs Valentine Richardson - the only surviving daughter of the late Valentine G Crittall, who became Lord Braintree and was a former Chairman of the Crittall Manufacturing Company.

The bench, created by Essex artist Tim Ward, is inspired by the distinctive forms of Crittall windows and incorporates colour plates of images reproduced from the Crittall archive at Braintree Museum.

At the unveiling, Hon Mrs Valentine Richardson said:"I wouldn't have missed this for anything.  I love the bench - its clean and simple design is really attractive. This has been a really special occasion."

The new bench and tree planting were made possible thanks to Braintree District Council's Braintree Local Committee which established the Living Landscapes project to introduce new tree planting and associated benefits into the town. 

Cllr Wendy Schmitt, Chairman of Living Landscapes "Tree planting and environmental improvements are the things that the local people of Braintree most supported at our public meetings. So this is great news for the town - we know that trees can boost the 'feel good' factor of a town, appealing to shoppers, visitors and traders alike.

"Not only do people love to see trees in towns,  they help off-set the effects of climate change too, by creating shady areas for visitors and shoppers, making streets and buildings cooler in summer, cleaning the air we breathe and helping to reduce wind speeds."

To plant the London plane tree, Stewart Landscape Construction used specialist urban planting techniques including 'root cells' which provide an adequate rooting area without impacting on paving and nearby properties

Braintree District Council's Landscape Services team is managing the Living Landscape project which set aside funds from Local Area Committee and Essex County Council to achieve a number of green initiatives. Work to date has included planting new trees along Pierrefitte Way to create a 'green gateway' into the town; traditionally managing woodland at Kings Wood at Marks Farm; improving local green spaces and planting new plane trees in Braintree town centre. Work continues this spring with more tree planting and new seating at Great Square.

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