Coulsdon Heritage - <>

A personal page to raise awareness of the cultural heritage and open spaces of Old Coulsdon, an ancient village and parish on London's urban fringe

Modern Coulsdon is centred on the Brighton Road down in the valley. But before the 20th century, the centre of the ancient parish of Coulsdon was on the hill at Bradmore Green, and the valley was known as Smitham Bottom.

Until the 1930s, the village of Old Coulsdon was a hamlet with a couple of roads, a church, a school and a few clusters of cottages and farm buildings.

Today, Old Coulsdon has been absorbed into London, and the old roads are full of houses. But when you look around, traces of the rural past are all around you – the ancient parish church, the old flint farmhouses and cottages, and the glorious Surrey countryside.

But the heritage and open spaces in and around Coulsdon are under threat from development. In June 2014, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, approved plans to build 675 homes on Cane Hill. Work began on the first phase began in July 2015, and the first show home opened in January 2016. The water tower and locally listed chapel and administration block are still boarded up, and no restoration plans have been submitted.

Backland developments have been approved in the south of Old Coulsdon in Keston and Waddington Avenues. And Croydon Council’s development company, Brick by Brick, have proposed squeezing more flats and houses into the green space on Tollers Estate.

Thankfully, it’s not all bad news. Following lobbying by local residents, Stoats Nest Village has been added to the list of Local Heritage Areas to be included in the proposed Local Plan, and Cane Hill Water Tower has become a Local Designated Landmark.