The Apex Society

A Modernist Vision in Frimley

Formed in 1965, the Apex Society completed seven housing schemes across the south of England. Only three carried the Apex name: Apex Drive in Frimley, Apex Close in Beckenham, and Apex Court in Weybridge (now demolished). All were developed by Derek Sharp Associates.

Apex Drive was built on a 2.2-acre site with planning permission for 18 houses per acre to Parker Morris standards. While nearby speculative builders achieved similar density with narrow-fronted terraced houses, the Apex Society took a radically different approach: a cluster of geometric forms faced in cream-coloured brick, with distinctive cylindrical projections and exposed painted concrete structural elements under modernist flat roofs.

Completed in mid-1970 at a total contract price of £145,000, the estate comprises houses of 920 square feet each. Built by Streeter's of Hampton, the innovative design took careful account of the preservation order on most of the trees on the site. This sensitivity to context, combined with the architectural distinction, led Apex Drive to become locally listed buildings.

Architecture

The Drum, The Cross, The Light

Each house at Apex Drive is formed within a cross-section complex per block, an interlocking arrangement that creates private outdoor spaces while maintaining a cohesive visual identity. The most distinctive feature is the cylindrical drum — a light well that rises through the heart of each dwelling, never intended to be occupied by a spiral staircase but designed to draw natural light deep into the interior.

The original late-1969 layout provided generous living across four levels: a ground-floor living area, first-floor kitchen and dining with bathroom, second-floor bedrooms including a master suite, and a compact third-floor bedroom with a landing window overlooking the estate.

The Architect

Laurie Abbott

Before winning the Apex Society's architectural competition, Laurie Abbott worked on Creek Vean — a house built by Team 4, the legendary practice comprising Norman Foster and his wife alongside Richard and Su Rogers. Creek Vean achieved listed building status in 1998.

"I'm not a passionate architect, but, whatever I do, I try and do the best I can."

As Apex Drive and Apex Close came to fruition, Rogers and Piano unexpectedly won the commission for the Pompidou Centre. Abbott was recruited to work on it with them, producing the very first sketches that placed the services on the building's exterior — a defining feature of one of the 20th century's most influential buildings.

He went on to do initial drawings for the Lloyd's of London building, which displays his fondness for drum shapes — the same cylindrical motif found at Apex Drive. His architecture studies began at Walthamstow Technical College at age 16, and his career would span projects from Tokyo to New York, including Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport.

Key Milestones

Find Us

Apex Drive, Frimley

Nestled between Frimley Green Road and Church Road in Frimley, Surrey, the estate sits on the grounds of a former manor house. The mature trees throughout the estate were planted in those original grounds and are protected by preservation orders.