Channing Junior School Highgate High Street London N6 5JR

A watching brief was carried out on the site between January 2019 and March 2020. The current school building was known as 'Fairseat' from 1860 to the early 20th century. The northern wing of the building being demolished in 1909 when the adjacent road, Highgate High Street, was widened to accommodate a new tram line. The building was remodelled and became a school from 1926 to the present day. Natural sand and gravel were at c 115.90m OD to the north, dropping down c 107.50m OD to the south. The land also dropped away to the east of the school building following the natural contours of Highgate Hill. There was a boundary/garden wall [3] along the southern edge of property. Wall footings [104] and [105] might be part of the 16th century building of Sir Roger Cholmeley (1485-1565) or reusing material from its demolition. Wall [103] with the external render is the east wall of the 18th century building once known as 'Fairseat' whose north side was demolished in 1909. There was also a brick drain [102] that was outside the house but might relate to large greenhouses once located adjacent to north east corner of the house. Brick wall [101] is the same as wall[l107] and is an earlier terrace wall to the east of the current school building. The curved walls: [108] and [109] are probably evidence of steps that lead down from the terrace to gardens to east. By the 1870 OS map there were steps leading to an entrance on the south side of the building. Wall [110] is an internal wall belonging to the 18th century building 'Fairseat' and incorporated a fireplace and an adjacent cupboard area. There was c 2.0m of landscaping deposits dating to the 19th and 20th centuries associated with the gardens to the south and east of the current school building.