IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Gracefield Gardens, LONDON, SW16 2TT

The Grange is an Arts and Craft style house, with extensive tile-hanging and bargeboards. The date 1900 is recorded in a plaque on the decorative gatehouse (Image]). The house is currently a medical clinic. It is within the Leigham Court Road (North) Conservation Area. Leigham Court Road was laid out in 1839, and while development began in the early 1840s, it didn’t really take off until after the building of the Crystal Palace and West End Railway and the opening of Streatham Hill station in 1856. Quite a number of the original, large Victorian houses survive at either end of the road, and even though their grounds have in some cases since been built on, the remaining mature trees and general landscaping have enabled the area to retain “much of its original arcadian character.” Information from Lambeth Council (http://www.lambeth.gov.uk/NR/exeres/CE4B5CE1-0387-40ED-B5A9-273A5160C34A.htm ).

A rare incursion into Streatham of a big name architect, in this case Richard Norman Shaw. Built in 1872-73 for G.H. Best.

The school's new sports hall, completed in 2009, was built from recycled shipping containers, "the first such in the world" http://www.betterpublicbuilding.org.uk/finalists/2009/dunraven-school/ .

A close-up of the pargetting on the side of the gatehouse. It is fancifully decorated with masks, mythical birds and scrolls, and the date 1900 just can be discerned. A view of the main house can be found here: Image

This view looks along Sunnyhill Road with Wellfield Road leading off to the right past the Leigham Arms. The Standard describes the Leigham Arms thus: "A country pub somehow dropped into the south London sprawl, the Leigham Arms is a delight." See http://www.standard.co.uk/goingout/bars/leigham-arms-is-a-delightful-country-pub-7414444.html

Originally an Anglican church, All Saints, a Chapel of Ease to St Leonard's (the parish church). It was built around 1897 and closed in 1951. It remained in parish use as the Howland Hall until 1968 and is now an Apostolic Church.

This pub proclaims its patriotic credentials not only with the flag of St George but also with spoof plaques on the wall such as "Ken Livingstone did not live here". It gets good ratings on review websites.

Another block of flats above shops, this one was designed by Messrs Joseph in c1931, and took the original name of the adjacent cinema. It is within the Streatham High Road and Streatham Hill Conservation Area. The course of Streatham High Road has been a major highway between London and Sussex since Roman times. Its current appearance is largely attributable to two major spells of development. The first was during the late C19th following the opening of Streatham Hill station in 1856, and the second was after 1911 when the line to Victoria was electrified. Though much-maligned and undoubtedly blighted by heavy traffic, closer examination reveals that the road is lined with a number of interesting buildings, some of which reflect the period between the wars when Streatham was a fashionable centre of entertainment. Information from Lambeth Council (http://www.lambeth.gov.uk/NR/exeres/CE4B5CE1-0387-40ED-B5A9-273A5160C34A.htm ). Typical levels of traffic, approaching the point at which the road narrows.