South Norwood is a district of South London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon, Greater London and formerly in the historic county of Surrey. It is located 7.8 miles (12.5 km) south-east of Charing Cross, north of Woodside and Addiscombe, east of Selhurst and Thornton Heath, south of Crystal Palace/Upper Norwood and Anerley, and south-west of Penge.
Together with Norwood New Town, it forms the electoral ward of South Norwood in the local authority of Croydon. The ward as a whole had a resident population in 2001 of just over 14,000.
The south-eastern side of the district is dominated by the country park which opened in 1989. At the northern end of the town is South Norwood Lake, which was created after the reservoir for the unsuccessful Croydon Canal went out of use.London Canals: Croydon: Norwood It is used by the Croydon Sailing Club and local anglers who fish for carp, bream and perch.
There are two secondary schools in the area along with a public leisure centre. South Norwood has a high street which forms part of Selhurst Road. It is a commuter district, with many residents travelling to either Croydon or the City of London for employment via Norwood Junction railway station. South Norwood and surrounding areas are covered by the London SE25 postcode, the southernmost London post town.
History The area was originally covered by the Great North Wood, which was a natural oak forest that covered four miles (6 km) of south London. Apart from South Norwood, the wood covered Upper Norwood, West Norwood (known as Lower Norwood until 1885) and the Woodside and Gipsy Hill areas.'Norwood: Introduction', Survey of London: volume 26: Lambeth: Southern area (1956), pp. 167–173 British History Online
References to rents being paid for a coppice called Cholmerden in the area date to the 1400s. By the 1670s the site had been developed into the grounds of Goat House. Handley's Brickworks' seven chimneys once dominated the landscape of the area. It has been demolished and the site changed into grassland and a lake, called Brickfields Meadow.
The Croydon Canal was constructed in the early 19th century, running from New Cross to the site of West Croydon station. As it passed through South Norwood, pubs sprang up near its course. The Jolly Sailor still stands at the intersection of South Norwood Hill and High Street. The Ship, a few yards to the east, was beside the loading point for bricks from a nearby brick field across what is now the High Street. The passageway through which bricks passed to the canal is still there. The Goat House pub (which has since been demolished) was said to have been named after an island in the canal on which goats were kept.
Jolly-sailor station opened in 1839 by the London and Croydon Railway. It was listed as Jolly-sailor near Beulah Spa on fare lists and timetables and renamed 'Norwood' in 1846. The station was immediately adjacent to a level crossing over Portland Road, making it slightly further north than the site currently occupied by Norwood Junction station. As part of the construction works for the atmospheric-propulsion system, the world's first railway flyover was constructed south of Tennison Road, to carry the new atmospheric-propulsion line over the conventional steam line below. In 1847, the atmospheric propulsion experiment was abandoned.
In 1848 South Norwood remained a small hamlet, however the following 10–20 years rapid development occurred with the construction of roads and the Selhurst Park estate. The area gained its own parish church, Holy Innocents, in 1895. Much of the growth of the area was the result of William Ford Stanley, who constructed a precision instrument factory in the area in 1867 and established a technical school here in 1902 (now the Stanley Halls).
Further development occurred throughout the 20th century with the building of terraced houses and public housing developments. Large numbers of immigrants from the Caribbean settled here and the area retains a large black population.
In 1966, a dog called Pickles discovered, under a bush in Beulah Hill, the FIFA World Cup Jules Rimet Trophy, which had been stolen from an exhibition of rare stamps at Westminster Central Hall.
South Norwood today
The area is centred on the junction where the High Street meets South Norwood Hill/Portland Road; the bulk of the shops and amenities are located along the High Street and Selhurst Road/Penge Road, with further shops, restaurants etc. lining Portland Road for some distance. South Norwood is now unofficially divided into the less deprived area in the north west side of the railway, which was the location of a private estate, and the generally more deprived area in the north east.Croydon Decennial Health Atlas 2004 NHS Croydon In the south east of the borough, where workers for a former brick factory lived, the entrance to the estate was between a pair of pillars, though they have long since been demolished. However the capitals were preserved and now sit on the two brick pillars at the Selhurst Road entrance to South Norwood Recreation Ground.
Governance South Norwood was within the County Borough of Croydon until 1965 when, following the enactment of the London Government Act 1963, it became part the local government of Greater London. The town is now in the London Borough of Croydon, which has the responsibility for providing services such as education, refuse collection, and tourism.
South Norwood is represented on Croydon Council by South Norwood ward, a part of the Croydon East parliamentary constituency, and Woodside ward, which is divided between Croydon East and Croydon West constituencies. The sitting Member of Parliament (MP) for Croydon East is Natasha Irons. The MP for Croydon West is Sarah Jones. Both are members of the Labour Party.
Policing services are provided by the Metropolitan Police via the Croydon Police Station branch in Park Lane, Croydon. The London Fire Brigade provide services for the area and Greater London as a whole; the nearest fire station is at Woodside.
Geography
South Norwood is bordered by Anerley to the north, Selhurst to the south, Woodside due east and Thornton Heath to the west. The northernmost point of South Norwood is at Beaulieu Heights (alternatively spelt Beulah Heights, Beaulah Heights and Beulieu Heights) which contains Beulah Heights Park, overlapping with Upper Norwood and New Town. The northern part of the district is situated on the lower parts of the hill that forms Upper Norwood.
South Norwood lies on the southern slopes of the Norwood Ridge which forms the southern edge of the London Basin. This line of hills runs from north-east to south-west for about three miles (5 km) and rises to approximately above sea level at its highest point. It is formed by a ridge of grey silty deposits known as London Clay, capped in places with the gravel of the Claygate Beds.Sheet 270 South London, 1:50,000 Geology Series, British Geological Survey, Keyworth, 1998, Because of this gravel working was an important local industry and at one time the road along Beulah Hill was called Gravel Pit Road. South Norwood Hill is the most southerly spur of this ridge and the London Clay extends at its foot to the southern edge of the South Norwood Country Park. Here a brook marks the junction with the sands and gravels of the Blackheath Beds that rise to Shirley, Addington Hills and Croham Hurst. Streams join Chaffinch Brook and the Beck to form the River Pool, which eventually flows into the River Ravensbourne.
Education
Primary Schools There are several primary schools in the South Norwood area including Priory Special School, Heavers Farm Primary School, South Norwood Primary School, Cypress Junior School and Cypress Infant School, St. Chad's Roman Catholic Primary School, St. Mark's Primary School and Oasis Academy Ryelands.
Secondary Schools The former Stanley Technical High School (the legacy of local inventor and engineer William Stanley) has been replaced and turned into an academy as part of the Harris Federation. After deliberations with local residents it was originally going to be called Harris at Stanley, but the federation changed it to Harris Academy South Norwood, an act which created some controversy. Many local residents were upset that the name Stanley was removed from the school, as Stanley, who had the original school built in 1907, is a famous and well regarded figure in South Norwood. Harris City Academy Crystal Palace is a city academy in the north west of South Norwood, but to avoid confusion with the other school it uses the Crystal Palace name. Other secondary schools in the area include Oasis Academy Arena.
Higher Education
South Norwood is home of Spurgeon's College, a world-famous Baptist theological college, since 1923; Spurgeon's is located on South Norwood Hill and currently has some 1,000 students. It is one of only four further education establishments in the borough.
South Norwood Library
South Norwood Library, nicknamed 'The Brutalist Library' is located on the corner of Selhurst Road and Lawrence Road. A public library part of the Croydon Libraries library system, the building was constructed in 1968 by Croydon borough architect Hugh Lea and is arranged over five levels split across the front and rear of the building in order to maximise the internal space. The front part of the building has the ground floor entrance level, which houses the reception, and the second floor which houses the children's library. The rear of the building has the basement, first and third floors. The levels are offset so that the floors in the front and rear of the building appear like mezzanine levels to each other.
Sports and leisure
Leisure Centre South Norwood contains a leisure centre which is owned and maintained by Better on behalf of Sport Croydon.South Norwood Pools and Leisure Centre Croydon Council South Norwood Leisure Centre is situated on Portland Road and reopened in late 2007 after refurbishment. It had been closed in early 2006 and was due for demolition, so that it could be redesigned from scratch like the leisure centre in Thornton Heath, at a cost of around £10 million. In May 2006 the Conservatives gained control of Croydon and decided that doing this would cost too much money, so they decided to refurbish the centre instead, although this decision came with controversy. It now includes a 25m swimming pool and a gym.
South Norwood Country Park
South Norwood is also home to South Norwood Country Park, 116 acres of nature reserve. After previously being home to a sewage works (closed in 1966) and fireworks factory; the habitat has been cultivated over time to nurture an abundance of species and wildlife. Other parks in the local area are South Norwood Recreation Ground, Heavers Meadow, Brickfields Meadow, Beaulieu Heights, South Norwood Lake and Grounds, Woodside Green and Ashburton Park.
South Norwood Community Festival The South Norwood Community Festival is an annual event at South Norwood Recreational Ground which first began in 2011 as an inclusive event which would benefit the local community. In 2022 over 8,000 people gathered to enjoy live bands, refreshments, arts and crafts and children's entertainment. The event is run entirely by volunteers and profits are donated to local charities and invested back into the future festival plans. The last festival took place on Sunday, 2 July 2023.
Croydon Sports Arena