Walworth

Walworth
Walworth  Walworth shown within Greater London
OS grid reference	TQ325785
London borough	Southwark
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Region	London
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	LONDON
Postcode district	SE17
Dialling code	020
Police	Metropolitan
Fire	London
Ambulance	London
EU Parliament	London
UK Parliament	North Southwark and Bermondsey
London Assembly	Lambeth and Southwark
List of places UK England London

Walworth is an inner-city district in the London Borough of Southwark. Walworth probably derives its name from the Old English "Wealhworth" which meant Welsh (British) farm. It is located 1.9 miles (3.1 km) south east of Charing Cross and near to Camberwell and Elephant and Castle.

The major streets in Walworth are the Old Kent Road, New Kent Road and Walworth Road. It once had a common surrounded by streets with houses on one side, the Common on the other. This whole area is now covered by housing.

History

Walworth appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Waleorde. It was held by Bainiard from Archbishop Lanfranc of Canterbury. Its domesday assets were: 3½ hides; one church, four ploughs, 8 acres (32,000 m²) of meadow. It rendered £3.^[1]

John Smith House is on Walworth Road, and was renamed in memory of John Smith, who was leader of the Labour Party from 1992 up to his sudden death in 1994. A former headquarters of the Labour Party, it was often seen in news reports at election times and in the background as people came and went from stormy meetings of the Labour Party National Executive Committee. It was used by the London Borough of Southwark as the home for its education department and reopened in July 2012 as a hostel.^[2]

St. Peter's Church, Walworth's altar

St. Peter's Church, Walworth, built circa 1825, is an excellent example of the neo-classical style of church built by Sir John Soane. It is an indication of the wealth of the middle-class merchants who then lived in the vicinity that they could afford an architect of such prominence. Charles Upfold was born at Walworth Common and baptised at St. Peters. The church is home to the Monkey Gardens - which was once home to a menagerie kept by a past Reverend of the Church, but is now a delightful garden.

Manor Place Baths

Manor Place Baths is a former wash house in Manor Place off Walworth Road. It is a grade II listed building. The building was renovated by Kagyu Samye Dzong, Tibetan Buddhist Centre who obtained a five-year lease in 2005. They opened it as their London centre, called Manor Place Samye Dzong on 17 March 2007. Adjacent is the Council's old recycling depot which is now closed and has been replaced by a new facility at 43 Devon Street, off Old Kent Road.^[3]

Walworth is also home to the Pullens buildings - a mixture of Victorian live/work spaces and yards. Many of the flats are 1 bedroom, and some of the flats still connect to the Workshops of any of the three yards (Illife Yard, Peacock Yard and one other). They all share communal roof terraces with extensive views over to the West End.

Walworth also used to have a Zoo, in Royal Surrey Gardens, which was visited by Queen Victoria.

East Street market is a major street market.

Politics

Walworth is a community council area in the London Borough of Southwark and is made up of three council wards: Newington, East Walworth and Faraday, each of which elects three councillors. Of the nine councillors for Walworth, eight are Labour (two from Newington and three from both East Walworth and Faraday) and the remaining member is a Liberal Democrat (from Newington).

Regeneration

Large amounts of regeneration and gentrification are occurring in Walworth, including the proposed demolition of the Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre, the newly built Strata tower, the proposed demolition of the Heygate and Aylesbury Estates and re-jigging St Mary's Churchyard as a new park. Some local residents have been updating a site that looks at the regeneration and gentrification in Walworth since 2006.^[4]

Famous ex-residents

• Charlie Chaplin
• Sir Michael Caine
• Robert Browning
• John Ruskin
• Charles Upfold
• Charles Babbage
• Bill Bailey
• Walworth Jumpers
• Michael Faraday
• Samuel Palmer
• Frank Stubbs, recipient of the Victoria Cross

Transport and local

Nearest places

• Newington
• Southwark
• Kennington
• Peckham
• Bermondsey
• Camberwell
• Lambeth

Nearest underground station

• Elephant & Castle

Nearest National Rail station

• Elephant & Castle

References

1. ↑ Surrey Domesday Book
2. ↑ Safestay to open in Elephant & Castle, London, SE17 Safestay, 5 March 2012
3. ↑ Kagyu Samye Dzong London at Manor Place Kagyu Samye Dzong London
4. ↑ Southwark Notes – whose regeneration?

External links

• Southwark Notes – whose regeneration? Regeneration and Gentrification in Southwark, South London

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