Description
St James' Church was built in 1831, when a new church was needed to serve the growing parish of Enfield. Originally a Chapel of Ease, St James's became a district church in 1833. It was damaged in a fire in the mid C20th and later restored. The churchyard, which adjoins Durants Park and Hertford Road Cemetery, was extended in 1861 and is now closed to burials. There are a number of good trees, gravestones and tombs, mainly C19th.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | St James's, Highway |
|---|---|
| Site location | Hertford Road, Enfield Highway |
| Postcode | EN3 |
| What3Words | ///dairy.rash.robe |
| Type of Site | Churchyard |
| Borough | Enfield |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | unrestricted |
| Public Transport | Rail: Southbury then bus. Bus: 121, 279, 307, 310, 310A, 363 |
| Research Updated | 1 April 2011 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
St James' Church was built in 1831 to the designs of William Lockner, a stock brick building in Perpendicular style with a pinnacled tower. It was built as a Chapel-of-Ease for Enfield Parish as the population increased. The land was given by Mr Woodham Connop and the building cost raised by subscription. The church was consecrated on 15 October 1831 by the Bishop of London, Dr Blomfield. It later became a district church for the parish when the area to the east was assigned by Order in Council on 9 December 1833 and was licensed for marriages in 1845. The chancel was added in 1864, built in memory of Elizabeth Harman (d.1859), the wife of Revd John Harman, who was the vicar since 1854. Other members of the Harman family are commemorated, the east window having stained glass in memory of Ezekiel and Sarah Harman of Theobalds and of Sarah's sister Mary Wright. The church was damaged in a fire in the mid C20th and later restored. The churchyard was extended in 1861, and adjoins Durants Park and Hertford Road Cemetery (q.q.v). It is now closed to burials and is maintained by LB Enfield, but has some good trees, gravestones and tombs, mainly of the C19th.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ351970 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | Church |
| Site Management | LB Enfield Place Shaping and Enterprise, Parks Business Unit |
| Dates | 1831 |
| Listed Structures | LBII: St James' Church |
| 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 | Enfield |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | Not known |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | Yes |
| Special Policy Area | No |
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
Hertford Road Cemetery opened in 1880 on land acquired by the Enfield Burial Board and was developed as a separate entity from the adjacent churchyard of St James. The C19th Cemetery Lodge is a two-storey brick building, now largely destroyed by fire, having been sold by auction in the late 1990s. After the Burial Board was wound up in the 1920s, the cemetery was later owned by LB Enfield, and the Lodge used by the Parks Superintendent and then as a Parks store.
Durants Park is named after Durrants, a sub-manor of the Enfield Estate dating from the C13th. From the early C15th Durants was owned by the influential Wroth family and James I reputedly visited frequently. In the C18th Sir Thomas and Lady Stringer lived here, whose son William married a daughter of the infamous Judge Jeffreys. Fortifications on an outbuilding were said to have been erected for his protection. In 1910 this and the remains of the moated manor house, Durants Arbour, were demolished. In 1903 Enfield UDC had bought c.14 hectares of estate land for a public park. The park initially had a bandstand and drinking fountain, but by the 1930s facilities for tennis, bowling and putting, and an athletics track were provided.
Enfield Playing Fields were provided as recreational space in 1939. The large area of land, some 128.5 acres formerly Bury Farm, was purchased by Enfield Borough Council with the help of a grant of £3,500 from King George's Fields Foundation, as a result of which the site is also known as King George's Playing Fields. Within the park is the Art Deco Queen Elizabeth II Stadium, a brick building with a round turret. A line of horse chestnut trees runs through the playing fields.
