| Description | The East Infill Scheme was a scheme for the site of the eastern galleries at the Museum, designed to meet the needs for increased exhibition space and educational facilities. The proposals were cleared with the Local Authority and the Greater London Council in 1976. However, it subsequently became necessary to change the design to comply with new building and fire safety regulations. The revised scheme omitted the mezzanine floors and introduced an extra storey. When the plans were re-submitted in 1978, they received opposition from groups including: the Greater London Council (GLC), the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the Victorian Society, due to the increased height and the destruction of the original Waterhouse single storey galleries. This led to public inquiry in June 1979, which decided that the scheme should be allowed to proceed subject to minor alterations to the proposed roof profile.
In October 1982, the Secretary of State for Education and Science, Sir Keith Joseph, decided that money for the East Infill Scheme could no longer be provided from the Science Budget, and the project was cancelled.
Further papers on the scheme can be found amongst the Director's papers at DF/DIR/933/127 |