Description
The island site occupied by Highbury Quadrant Congregational Church has a garden area enclosed by a low brick parapet. The Congregational Church was established here in 1878 and was formerly at the centre of residential terraced houses, now replaced by council blocks of the Highbury Quadrant Estat, built by the LCC in 1955/6.
Practical Information
| Site location | Highbury Quadrant |
|---|---|
| Postcode | N5 2TE |
| What3Words | ///lows.paying.crass |
| Type of Site | Private Garden |
| Borough | Islington |
| Open to Public | Occasionally |
| Opening Times | gate locked but may be open when church in use |
| Public Transport | Rail/Tube: Finsbury Park then bus. Bus: 4, 19, 236. |
| Research Updated | 1 April 2004 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
The east and north sides of the church grounds are enclosed by wire mesh fencing, with gates at the western apex of the triangular site. Planting includes notable ash, robinia, field maple and lime, and iIn front of the church and along the south and east boundary are grass, shrubs and trees. The areas north and east of the church are more overgrown. Charles Booth, famous for his Survey into Life and Labour in London dating from 1886-1903, notes his visit to the congregational church on 28 November 1897 (Notebook B386 p14-19).
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ321861 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | The Congregational Church |
| Site Management | The Congregational Church |
| Dates | 1878 |
| On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens | No |
| Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965 | No |
| Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931 | No |
| Local Authority | Islington |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | No |
| Other LA Designation | Shopping Policy Area |
Please note the Inventory and its content are provided for your general information only and are subject to change. It is your responsibility to check the accuracy.
Nearby parks and gardens
Highbury Quadrant Estate was built by the LCC in 1955-56 with low blocks of flats and a clubroom, the buildings set within landscaping of lawns and numerous trees, including mature horse chestnuts. The architects worked with the local community in preparing their designs, and the estate has been described as 'with hindsight, the ultimate manifestation of the LCC's Swedish-inspired socialists, usually known as the 'herbivores'' (Andrew Saint, 'London Suburbs'). A sculpture in cemented iron by Siegfried Charoux entitled 'The Neighbours', was commissioned by the LCC in 1957 and erected within the landscaping in 1959. Charoux's sculpture of two figures represented the ideals of the 'working man'. Three nature gardens were created on the estate in 2020 in a project developed with local residents through the auspices of Elizabeth House Community Centre, providing access to gardening and nature, and improving biodiversity.
The site is an oblong enclosed area set back from the hilltop road beyond Highbury Barn, which forms the frontage to Highbury Park Terrace, a range of 20 elaborate Grecian terraced houses. The strip of garden is above pavement level behind a retaining wall and contains grass and a row of horse chestnuts. It is shown on Cruchley's map of 1829.
Formerly called Addington Mansions, this was one of the first groups of council flats by Islington Borough Council. Designed by E C P Monson and built in the early 1920s Taverner Estate is on the site of a number of earlier villas. The Taverner Estate consisted of 2 series of flats laid out as squares and was opened in July 1922 by the Mayor of Islington; a plaque on site records that it was named after Alderman Frederick John Addington, a Trade Unionist and Councillor until 1925. When it underwent modernisation from 1977, the estate was later renamed Taverner Estate after Louis Taverner, a landowner in the Highbury Grove area in the mid C19th. The eastern Taverner Square was completed in 1979 and the western Peckett Square in 1981, the latter named after George Peckett who was on the local Vestry in the 1860s and was involved in the creation of Finsbury Park. The two squares have trees, grass and some seating.