Charlton House might be the first place that comes to mind if someone asks about listed buildings in SE7, but did you know that there are two Grade II-listed telephone boxes in Charlton?
The phone boxes – one located at the top end of Wyndcliff Road and the other on Charlton Road opposite Charlton House – are K2s, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. They were built sometime between 1926 and 1935.
According to The Telephone Box website, around 1,700 boxes of this iconic design were installed before a slimmed down design (the K3) was rolled out, and 224 examples remain in London today.
Charlton’s examples still seem to work (unlike some more recent models) but could do with a little TLC; the one on Charlton Road in particular is missing quite a few panes of glass. Responsibility for the upkeep and maintenance of public telephone boxes lies with BT, which plans to scrap half of the payphones it manages in response to the dramatic decline in use since mobile phones gained widespread adoption. Grade II-listed status should hopefully protect these two examples.
K2 telephone box on Wyndcliff Road, Charlton.K2 telephone box on Wyndcliff Road, Charlton.K2 phone box on Charlton Road, near Charlton Church Lane.K2 phone box on Charlton Road, near Charlton Church Lane.K2 phone box on Charlton Road, near Charlton Church Lane.K2 phone box on Charlton Road, near Charlton Church Lane.
When we last looked inside the Summer House it still had its public toilets in situ (albeit unused for some time); now with the toilets, internal walls and an amount of asbestos removed – plus new clear windows letting the light in – it’s easier to imagine the space in use for events. Royal Greenwich Heritage Trust (RGHT) is still looking for ideas for future use of the Summer House that will balance its aims of historical interpretation, community use, and revenue generation – if you’ve got any ideas, get in touch with the team.
As you can see from the pictures below, the refurbishment is still underway; amongst other work to be done we were told that stone flagstones will be put down soon and, pending the reconnection of the electricity supply, temporary lighting put in to light the building up at night.
We were also able to have a look in the Summer House’s undercroft, the basement space which saw use as an air raid shelter in WWII. We were told this won’t be open this weekend, but RGHT hope to use for future special events, including possibly the Horn Fair.
The Community Garden in Maryon Park is throwing open its doors this Saturday as part of Capital Growth’s Urban Harvest event. Its chair TIM ANDERSON explains more…
Get a taste of London's edible gardens by dropping in to Maryon Park Community Garden in Charlton, one of Capital Growth’s flagship gardens, from 10am to 4pm.
Capital Growth is London’s largest food growing network, with over 2,000 gardens throughout the city.
At the Maryon Park Community Organic Food Growing Garden, activities include:
• Tours of the Garden and Forest School.
• Display of photos from the 1966 cult film Blow Up that was shot in Maryon Park.
• Activities for children: Making bird feeders.
• Pizza oven fired up from 12noon, bring your own dough and toppings
• Refreshments: Organic teas & coffee, cake and herb teas
• Jams and Chutney Sale
• Wood Craft Sale with Bird Boxes
• Plant and Cacti Sale
In the Community Garden Forest School area there will be a free Family Outdoor Art Workshop from 2pm to 3pm, lad by Simon Woodward from the Community Outdoor Art Therapy Service.
How to find the Community Garden: Enter Maryon Park from the main entrance in Maryon Road, follow the path to the left past the park lodge and find the Community Garden at the end of the park perimeter fence. Look out for the signs and bunting.
Charlton House’s Summer House, currently undergoing restoration works, will be open to visitors as part of this year’s Open House Weekend.
Many thanks to Charlton Champion contributor LARA RUFFLE COLES for this round-up of the properties in Charlton and nearby that are taking part in this year’s Open House Weekend.
Open House is a tricky beast… there is always so much to see over the two days, and as the event increases in popularity each year, balancing visiting many buildings versus visiting the popular ones gets harder and harder – let alone navigating your way round London.
So, how about you just stick to the Royal Borough of Greenwich this year? It is definitely worth focusing on a smaller area and is something the other half and I did one year – and we’ve been ‘Open House-ing’ since 2009.
This year’s event takes place on Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd of September, and Greenwich borough alone has 23 buildings to visit and 3 tours to consider. As it can all be a bit overwhelming, here is a Top Five ‘must have’ list, plus a few more if time allows.
An obvious but excellent choice. Our local community centre is London’s only surviving Jacobean mansion, and a superb venue to get married in. Visit rooms that are usually off limits during regular opening hours, and gaze lovingly at our local park through the upstairs windows. This year you’ll be able to take a look around the Summer House, currently undergoing an extensive refurbishment.
I’ve not been to this location but having visited other homes in Greenwich and further afield, a good nosy round someone else’s house is well worth your time (and it is the only house listed for Greenwich borough this year). This 1960s building is also the architect’s home so you can ask all the questions you like – whether your interest is the building itself or its interior design.
This graceful foot and cycle bridge between Deptford and Greenwich was opened in 2015 and spans over Deptford Creek. Visiting at low or high tide is an exciting prospect, and if you are really lucky you might see it open and close – please note we have no information on when this might happen!
A hidden gem at the top of Shooters Hill, this tiny 18th century tower reopened to the public a few years ago. The views from the roof are magnificent and you can also hire the castle for various events including weddings.
Built in 1903, our borough’s Edwardian town hall has an absolutely stunning main hall with bifurcated stairs. The entrance itself, the clockhouse and the exterior are also worth a good look at. And you can definitely get married here – as I did in 2014!
I’ve not been inside the yacht club, but viewing the building, the walkway to it and the surrounding Thames views make the trip there worthwhile. The area itself is also part of the Thames Path.
Across from Woolwich Barracks, the bombed-out St George’s Garrison Church is well worth a pootle about. Lovely brickwork, mosaics that have been recently restored, and a new arched roof to protect the ruins from further damage.
Don’t forget to order your guide to plan the weekend in advance. You can use the Open House site to read up on every listing, but having the actual book to carry about is essential. Order ASAP as delivery will be a few days.
If you aren’t keen on carrying an A5 book about, you can download the Apple and Google apps, but please do buy the guide for £10 and help support this amazing event.
Did you know that Open House takes places in other cities? 42 participants as of this year, read more at Open House Worldwide.
Have you got an Open House Weekend recommendation? Let us know in the comments below!
37 Bowater Road is set for demolition under the developer’s plans (photo: Neil Clasper)
Developer U+I has revealed it wants to demolish one of the remaining Siemens cable factory buildings on the Charlton riverside as part of a plan to build shops, offices and up to 520 homes.
The property giant, which recently completed the Deptford Market Yard development, has asked Greenwich Council if it needs to carry out an environmental assessment into the plans to develop land, which covers two streets in the Westminster Industrial Estate on the Charlton/Woolwich border: Bowater Road and Faraday Way.
Until 1968, this was home to the giant Siemens cable works, and many of the buildings remain in place. Several of them have recently been given local listing status by Greenwich Council, which has created a conservation area. U+I wants to demolish one of them, 37 Bowater Road, and keep the others.
The masterplan backs riverside towers near the Thames Barrier
Just as with the recent Flint Glass Wharf proposal, this is in an area where 10-storey blocks have been permitted (see map above).
37 Bowater Road is the building on the right of the new “missing link” cycle route
‘One of London’s largest factories’
A heritage assessment of the area commissioned by Greenwich Council says: “The south side of Bowater Road represents a step change in the scale of the works development from about 1911.
“The first building to be constructed is a much larger L-shaped building of 5 storeys plus basement was built for making rubber coated copper wire cable. It adopts new structural technologies, made possible by new regulations granted in the London Building Act of 1909, and employs a reinforced concrete frame beneath a Fletton brick shell.
“The adoption of new technologies made it possible to include much larger steel framed windows externally and wider spans between support columns internally, creating a lighter and clearer working environment overall.
37 Bowater Road. Photo: Neil Clasper
“The building was designed by Herbert and Helland, Siemens’ in-house architects. This was one of London’s largest factories when built and an early adopter of the new construction methods.
“The building has a matching extension of 1942, built at the height of the wartime production effort, after extensive bomb damage on the adjacent site must have placed extreme pressure on the works’ resources.” (You can read the rest in Chapters 3 and 4 here.)
The striking white building which runs along the north of the site, 18 Bowater Road, is proposed to be kept, although it is currently in poor condition. (See page 14 here for a map of the site.)
This is still a relatively early stage of the planning process, so no designs or details on “affordable” homes have yet been submitted.
Citing the “historical, architectural and environmental” significance of the pub, the Save the Pickwick campaign is calling on the developer to retain and reopen the pub in consultation with local residents, rather than demolish it and replace it with a ‘bland pub’.
The deadline for comments on the Pickwick planning application is Monday 24 September. To see the full application and make comments, visit planning.royalgreenwich.gov.uk and enter reference 18/2976/O. Comments on the application can also be sent to Peninsula ward councillors.
To get involved or contact the campaign, email savethepickwick [at] gmail.com.
“Once a year, the Environment Agency holds a full tide test closure of the Thames Barrier. The Barrier gates rotate by 90 degrees into the fully closed defence position stopping the tide going upstream into London. As the tide continues to come in, a higher level of water will build up downstream of the Barrier creating a different water level either side of the gates. Shortly after high tide, the gates will rotate further creating a 2 metre gap underneath (underspill). This in turn creates a white water rush effect behind each of the massive gate structures attracting birds to feed on small fish. This ‘underspill’ lasts approximately 2 hours.
There will be various fun and educational activities for children, talks, demonstrations, information and display stands.
As part of Open House weekend 2018, The Thames Barrier Information Centre will be open and free of charge on the day”.
Address for the Thames Barrier:
Thames Barrier Information Centre
1 Unity Way
London
SE18 5NJ
You can keep up to date with activities at the Thames Barrier via their Facebook and Twitter accounts.
The Thames Barrier in ‘closed’ positionUnveiled in May 2018, the sculpture is a memorial dedicated to those who worked on London, Kent and Essex’s flood defencesThe Thames Barrier lit up in rainbow colours for International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia in May 2018
The Charlton Champion 