#modernism

College Bank / Seven Sisters, Rochdale, 2025

Several tall, rectangular blocks of flats stand against a cloudy sky. In the foreground are trees, bushes, and a lawn with large rocks. A red car is parked on the road, and a building sign reads HALL COLLEGE on the left.

A low-angle view of a brown brick block of flats, showing several storeys with rows of rectangular windows and balconies in the centre. The sky above is cloudy and the branches of a tree are visible in the top right corner.

A tall, dark-brown concrete block of flats with many balconies and windows stands against a cloudy, overcast sky. Green trees are visible at the base in the foreground, and the building appears slightly weathered.

A cloudy day showing two tall, dark high-rise block of flats with many windows. A white car is driving along a curved street in the foreground, with trees and a few low buildings around the towers. The sky is grey and overcast.

In 2025 an independent structural survey deemed all seven towers unsafe, leading to plans for full evacuation in the coming months and growing uncertainty over the estate’s future.
College Bank, Wikipedia

I was reminded to dig this out of the photo library by this week’s West Country Modernism round-up. The Moneycentre (MWT, 1975), over the years home to various financial and insurance institutions, survived a demolition threat in 2018, changed hands multiple times, and has now been purchased by Homes England.

My own interest in architecture has only developed in the last few years, but clearly something attracted me to it back in 2021 – perhaps the geometrical simplicity of the tiled walls and tinted windows, as seen in this sunlit shot.