4.3.7

The Cavendish should be maintained in its entirety. This is a significant part of Cambridge's contribution to the history of Science. Piecemeal tinkering is not acceptable.

The present proposals, whether misguided, ill-informed or wilfull, do not take sufficient account of the historical significance of the Mond Building, and the Cavendish Laboratory, both of which ought to be more fully preserved than the plans allow for. For a full statement of the case, see the article by Boris Jardine in the Guardian for the 1st of September (http://www.theguardian.com/science/the-h-word/2015/sep/01/britains-most-important-historic-laboratory-is-under-threat). The plan to demolish part of the Mond Building and completely demolish its annexe is disastrous: the building is one of major significance in the history of modernist architecture and needs to be kept in something as close as possible to its original state. Similarly, the reduce the Cavendish to a walkway is to destroy half its historical significance. I would recommend very strongly that the planners consult (again?) with experts in this field, including Dr Jardine, before making such an unfortunate and irrevocable decision to destroy the university's (and the country's) scientific heritage.

The Cavendish Building is of international significance and its Grade II listing understates its intrinsic importance. That it was the first of its kind and that it was largely designed by James Clerk Maxwell put it into a category deserving of far greater respect than the scant regard paid to it by this scheme.