Exeter College, Hele Road

When Hele's Grammar School for Boys moved to a new site in Heavitree, Exeter Technical College moved into the old school premises at Hele Road and became Exeter College.

The building of the tower block was the end process of the foundation of Exeter College. Its roots go back to the founding of the Royal Albert Museum in 1869, when the School of Science and the School of Art were created. In 1893, the Royal Albert Memorial College was founded with a Technical Department with schools of art and science, and also running various technical classes.

The First World War

Just before the First World War, it would seem that the City and Guilds of London Technical Institute was running from within the Royal Albert Memorial College, Queens Street. By 1914 there was a 'junior manual and engineering school' housed in the new college building in Upper Paul Street. This had gained the title of Junior Technical and Engineering School in 1915. In 1919, the year after the end of end of the war, this seems to have evolved into the Junior Technical School at Bartholomew Street West. It had space for 80 boys for an education in the building and engineering trades. This institution appears to have continued until at least 1942.

By 1947, the Technical School had become the Secondary Technical College for Boys, based in some old army huts at Belmont Park. The name was changed to the Central Technical College by 1954, also at Belmont Park, but with annexes spread through the city including some more, former army huts on the Exeter bypass. By 1961 the college had changed its name to Exeter Technical College. It moved into the old Heles Grammar School in 1959.

The Tower Block

The tower block on the Heles site, was designed in 1958 by H B Rowe the City Architect and the building opened in 1963. The block is 120 ft high with 10 storey's and rather rigid, but unlike Renslade House, it does not seem to have such a disastrous impact on its locality. An article in the Express and Echo at the time when the plans were published, in February 1963, emphasised how the tower block had been designed with horizontal elements to complement the vertical design of St David's Church. It was also intended that trees between the tower block and Hele Road would lesson the impact of the building on the area. Attempts were made in 1992-93 to modify the windows and create a grid design, rather than the original horizontal bands. Views from the top of the building extend across Exeter, especially St Thomas and Exwick.

Apart from the tower block which also houses a small BBC TV studio, the college has added a sport's hall with a hyperbolic paraboloid roof. In 2005, work started on demolishing the old Hele's School buildings dating from 1931, and constructing a new front to the main college. The design is more welcoming, and integrates well into the rest of the college complex. Some care has been taken to preserve some of the historic, 19th century buildings that lie behind the new section. The new building was ready for the September 2006 term.

There are two main sites and a further nine smaller sites in other parts of the city, including the old Bishop Blackall School site. Courses are aimed at school leavers and adults, and offers studies in business and EFL to international students. The student population is over 10,000.

© 2007 David Cornforth - not to be used without permission