Region: London
Local Authority: Greenwich
Owner Type: Company
Funding Body: English Heritage; Freeman Historic Properties Ltd
Summary: Eltham Orangery, Eltham, Greenwich: repair of high-quality Grade II* listed Georgian building enables new use and removes it from the Buildings at Risk register.
Description: Until very recently, shoppers passing along Eltham High Street could be forgiven for barely noticing a sheet-clad feature sitting somewhat forlornly just a few metres away. Few would have known that hidden beneath its protective shield of scaffolding and sheeting was a small, high-quality Grade II* listed Georgian orangery dating from 1717–20.
Issue: Long a target for vandals and fly tippers, it lost its roof through arson in 1977. It was one of London’s most intractable Buildings at Risk and appeared on the cover of the first BAR register in 1991.
Strategy: Now, with major funding from English Heritage, Freeman Historic Properties Ltd, has completed a programme of repairs which will enable the building to be put to sympathetic new use.
Outcome: With the protective shell removed and its scars healed, it has been revealed for all to appreciate and enjoy in all its original splendour.
Keywords:
Re-use, Regeneration, Repair, Reconstruction & Restoration
© English Heritage
