Bexley Civic Offices | |
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General information | |
Location | Bexleyheath, London |
Coordinates | 51°27′20″N0°09′13″E / 51.4556°N 0.1537°E Coordinates: 51°27′20″N0°09′13″E / 51.4556°N 0.1537°E |
Inaugurated | 1989 |
Renovated | 2014 |
Renovating team | |
Architect | Bennetts Associates |
Renovating firm | Mace |
The Bexley Civic Offices is a municipal facility in Watling Street, Bexleyheath, London. It is the headquarters of the Bexley London Borough Council.
The new Bexley Urban District Council established offices in an early 19th century building on the south side of the Broadway in Bexleyheath known as Oak House in 1903. [1] After Bexley secured municipal borough status in 1932, Oak House remained the headquarters of the new Municipal Borough of Bexley until it was merged with the Municipal Borough of Erith to form the London Borough of Bexley with its new headquarters at Erith Town Hall in 1965. [2] The new council only used Erith Town Hall briefly as it chose to demolish Oak House in 1979 to make way for purpose-built Civic Offices which opened on the same site on the south side of the Broadway in 1980. [1]
The facility at Watling Street, which was designed in the style of a pagoda and built as the head office of the Woolwich Building Society at a cost of £10.5 million, [3] was officially opened by Princess Anne in 1989. [4] Following Barclays' acquisition of the building society in 2000 and a subsequent period of integration, the Watling Street building became vacant in 2005. [5]
Meanwhile, Bexley London Borough Council was seeking new facilities to replace its aging Civic Offices on the south side of the Broadway. [6] The Watling Street building was refurbished by Mace at a cost of £21.4 million to a design by Bennetts Associates. [7] [8] The works included alterations to facilitate open plan working and also involved the construction of a new building at the rear of the site to accommodate a council chamber, a council member's area and public galleries. [9] Some 1,300 council staff, who were previously based in four separate locations in the borough, [10] moved into the new Bexley Civic Offices in May 2014. [3] [11] It was officially opened by the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, in October 2014. [12]
In January 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the civic offices were used as a site to carry out COVID-19 testing. [13] Beginning in June, the offices were also used as a clinic to give out COVID-19 vaccines. [14] [15]
Bexleyheath is a town in south-east London, England, located in the historic county of Kent. It had a population of 31,929 as at 2011.
Crayford is a town and electoral ward in South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley. It lies east of Bexleyheath and north west of Dartford. Crayford is in the historic county of Kent. The settlement developed by the river Cray, around a ford that is no longer used.
Erith is an area in south-east London, England, 13.3 miles (21.4 km) east of Charing Cross. Within the historic county of Kent, it has formed part of the London Borough of Bexley since 1965. It lies north-east of Bexleyheath and north-west of Dartford, on the south bank of the River Thames. The population is 45,345. The town centre has been modernised with further dwellings added since 1961. The curved riverside high street has three listed buildings, including the Church of England church and the Carnegie Building. Erith otherwise consists mainly of suburban housing. It is linked to central London and Kent by rail and to Thamesmead by a dual carriageway. It has the longest pier in London, and retains a coastal environment with salt marshes alongside industrial land.
Welling is an area of South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley and the boundaries of the historic county of Kent. It is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of Bexleyheath, 4 miles (6.4 km) south east of Woolwich and 10.5 miles (16.9 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross, the traditional centre of London.
The London Borough of Bexley is a London borough in south-east London, forming part of Outer London. It has a population of 248,287. The main settlements are Sidcup, Erith, Bexleyheath, Crayford, Welling and Old Bexley. The London Borough of Bexley is within the Thames Gateway, an area designated as a national priority for urban regeneration. The local authority is Bexley London Borough Council.
Bexley is an area of south-eastern Greater London, England and part of the London Borough of Bexley. It is sometimes known as Bexley Village or Old Bexley to differentiate the area from the wider borough. It is located 13 miles (21 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross and south of Bexleyheath.
Belvedere is a town in south east London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley. It lies close to the River Thames, with Erith to the east, Bexleyheath to the south, and Abbey Wood and Thamesmead to the west. Prior to the creation of Greater London in 1965, Belvedere was in the administrative county of Kent.
The Woolwich Equitable Building Society was founded in Woolwich in 1847 and remained a local institution until after WWI when it began a modest regional expansion. This accelerated after WWII and the period from 1960 was notable for its acquisitions. Following deregulation, the Society diversified and became one of the largest national building societies.
Barnehurst is a town and electoral ward in South East London within the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north east of Bexleyheath, and 13.0 miles (20 km) east south-east of Charing Cross. It is separated from North Bexleyheath by the A220, Erith Road.
Erith and Thamesmead is a constituency created in 1997 and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Abena Oppong-Asare of the Labour Party.
Slade Green is an area of South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley and the historic county of Kent. It lies northeast of Bexleyheath, northwest of Dartford and south of Erith, and 14 miles (23 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross.
Northumberland Heath is a neighbourhood and electoral ward in the London Borough of Bexley, south east London, England. Northumberland Heath is often referred to locally as "North' Heath" and is often considered to be part of upper Erith.
Bexley was a local government district in north west Kent from 1879 to 1965 around the town of Old Bexley.
Erith was a local government district in north west Kent from 1876 to 1965 around the town of Erith. It also included the generally suburban areas of Northumberland Heath, Belvedere, and parts of Barnehurst, Bexleyheath, Crayford and the SE2 London Postal District of Abbey Wood.
The London Borough of Bexley owns and maintains over 100 parks and open spaces within its boundaries, with a total of 638 hectares. They include small gardens, river and woodland areas, and large parks with many sporting and other facilities.
Erith and Crayford was a constituency which returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the UK's Parliament.
King Henry School is a large mixed bilateral secondary school and sixth form in Erith in the London Borough of Bexley for students aged 11 to 18. In October 2010, it became an Academy, and from September 2018 it merged with Townley Grammar School in Bexleyheath, forming the Odyssey Trust for Education, a multi-academy trust, and adopting its current name. It is located just off the A220, Bexley Road.
Bromley College of Further and Higher Education, trading as London South East Colleges (LSEC), is a large college of further education and higher education operating in south-east London, England. It is a partner college of six of the twelve schools of the University of Greenwich. LSEC was established in 2016 by the amalgamation of Bromley College, Greenwich Community College and Bexley College. Its largest campus is in the town of Bromley, and others are situated in Erith, Plumstead and Orpington.
Broadway Shopping Centre,, is the principal covered shopping centre in the town centre of Bexleyheath and is the largest single covered shopping facility in the London Borough of Bexley.
Erith Town hall is a municipal building in Walnut Tree Road, Erith, south east London. It is a locally listed building.