Surrey Canal

Surrey Canal
Surrey Canal  Surrey Canal shown within Greater London
OS grid reference	TQ365765
London borough	Lewisham
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Region	London
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Police	Metropolitan
Fire	London
Ambulance	London
EU Parliament	London
UK Parliament	Lewisham Deptford
London Assembly	Greenwich and Lewisham
List of places UK England London

Coordinates: 51°29′09″N 0°03′03″W / 51.485953°N 0.05095°W / 51.485953; -0.05095

Surrey Canal is an area in inner south east London, situated 2 miles south of Tower Bridge, which was formerly home to a section of the Grand Surrey Canal. It is formed by the meeting point of three districts: Bermondsey, Deptford and New Cross.

History

The Grand Surrey Canal was used to transport timber from the Surrey Docks to Camberwell but it was closed in 1971 and subsequently filled in. The area surrounding this section of the canal has a history of residential development before it became a public park, Senegal Fields, in 1972. Since 1993 the former Senegal Fields site has been home to Millwall FC. Surrey Canal's boundaries as a district are roughly equal to the length of Surrey Canal Road, which runs along the perimeter of three postal code districts: SE16, SE14 and SE8.

Consented redevelopment in foreground

Redevelopment

A development proposal, which received planning consent in March 2012,^[1] will see a 30-acre site at Surrey Canal regenerated into a mixed-use quarter of London.

The development will include up to 2,400 new homes,^[2] a regional sports centre for London, major new transport links, public spaces, a shops, and community centre. An innovative recycling system will see waste at the neighbouring SELCHP power plant converted into heating and power for the site.^[3]

New Bermondsey railway station will be a new station on the London Overground network from Highbury & Islington to Clapham Junction via Surrey Quays and will complete the London Overground orbital railway around the Capital.^[4]

There will be two new bus routes linking the site directly to central London and Lewisham as well as new cycle and pedestrian routes. There will also be a redeveloped park at Bridgehouse Meadows.^[5] One London Buses stop currently has the name Surrey Canal Road, although it is located on nearby Trundleys Road, opposite Folkestone Gardens (Deptford) at the easternmost end of the site.

Towards the East end of the canal, running parallel to Deptford Park on what is currently a blocked off industrial site, a new development (Neptune Wharf) is being built. As part of the planning permission, Hatcham - the developers - will restore part of the towpath for the canal.^[6] This is currently not proposed to be a walking path for non-residents and will not be a through route allowing walkers to continue their journey along the full length of the old canal. There is strong local opposition to blocking off the towpath in this way, and a local campaign group has been established to work with the developers in allowing this towpath to continue to be a right of way, increasing security and safety of the neighbourhood.^[7]

Sporting Village

A key part of the proposals is the creation of London’s largest not-for-profit indoor sports centre for community and school use. The Sporting Village will provide indoor facilities for; basketball, netball, gymnastics, climbing, hockey, football, table tennis,^[8] boxing and cricket as well as a leisure centre with a swimming pool and day spa.^[9] The development has the backing of a number of sports national governing bodies, several of which are in discussions about relocating their headquarters to the Sporting Village.

The Surrey Canal Sports Foundation, a registered charity, has been established to ensure the long-term future of the facilities at Surrey Canal.^[9] The Foundation has an independent Board of Trustees, chaired by Steve Norris.

References