Building record 7198/310/1 - WWII air raid shelter, William Knibb Centre

A large World War II trench shelter was discovered in the grounds of the former Stamford Road School during development.

{1} A large air raid shelter was discovered during groundworks. The shelter is sealed below the car park surface and is comprised of a grid of linear corridors aligned roughly north to south and east to west. It was not possible to fully define the extent of the shelter. Much of the shelter was constructed from pre-cast concrete. Primary access appears to have been via a stair opposite one of the school doorways. The staircase was of brick. The survey identified two steel access hatches and a third acces point which had been blocked in concrete. A fourth hatch is likely at the south-east corner of the structure. The full extent of the structure could not be determined during this survey.

{2} Surveys of the underground structure were undertaken using a remotely operated vehicle in order to more fully understand their extent. Some areas remained inaccessible. Plan;

<1> Bassir A., 2018, Archaeological observation and recording during groundworks at the William Knibb Centre, Kettering, Northamptonshire, 2017 (Report). SNN111102.

<2> Scotney, R, 2017, William Knibb Centre, Kettering; Investigations of Subsurface Structures – Survey II (Report). SNN111494.

<3> Crank, N. (Editor), 2019, South Midlands Archaeology (49), p. 78 (Journal). SNN111755.

Record last edited

Nov 28 2019 10:26AM