Description
Behind St James Close is the private communal garden for residents of Victorian almshouses built by the Clothworkers Company in 1855. The eight 2-storey yellow brick houses were originally built in two blocks at right angles to each other, but they are now linked by new buildings and a screen wall between Nos. 4 and 5. The entrances are now at the rear of the buildings with consequent alterations to the main facades. They face onto a pleasant communal garden, which has recently been re-landscaped.
Practical Information
| Site location | 1-8 Bishop Street |
|---|---|
| Postcode | N1 |
| What3Words | ///mash.vibe.bike |
| Type of Site | Private Garden |
| Borough | Islington |
| Open to Public | Occasionally |
| Opening Times | Has opened for London Open Gardens. Otherwise private, for residents only |
| Public Transport | Tube: Angel (Northern). Bus: 38, 56, 73, 271, 341, 476 |
| Research Updated | 1 June 2009 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
The land used to be owned by the Canons of St Paul's Cathedral and was acquired by the Clothworkers' Company in the reign of Henry VIII. The current St James Church was built of Kentish ragstone in 1873/5 and designed by the architect to the Clothworkers' Company, F W Porter. The Clothworkers' Company's C16th Lambe's Chapel in the City had been demolished in 1872 and over the door in the church is a half-figure of William Lambe dating from 1612, together with Flemish roundels that were formerly in the chapel. Lambe was Master of the Clothworkers in 1569. The Clothworkers attended services at St James Church until the 1980s. The parish joined with the parishes of two other churches, that of St Philip in Linton Street in 1953 and of St Peter in Devonia Road in 1981.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ322838 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | Church of England |
| Site Management | Church |
| Dates | 1855 |
| Listed Structures | LBII: Clothworkers Almshouses |
| 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 |
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
The land in this area was part of the estate of the Clothworkers' Company, who owned and maintained this small area of green space at Prebend Street. The garden is partly surrounded by low walls, with grass, a few mature plane trees, shrubs around the perimeter and a number of seats. In 1928 the garden was described as 'a small enclosure at the junction of roads containing a number of trees'.
Union Square was built on land within the Clothworkers' Estate, which was developed from 1846. The gardens were provided for private use by leaseholders of surrounding houses but as early as 1908 had been proposed for public use by the MPGA, the area by that time densely populated and with little open space. By 1946 Union Square was owned by the London and Manchester Assurance Company who then passed the freehold to Islington Borough Council. In 1966 the square was bisected when the Packington Estate was rebuilt but the gardens were reinstated and opened to the public in c.1968.
Tibberton Square consists of two terraces facing each other, between which is an area of garden that was once for the communal use of the residents. The houses were built by Thomas Wontner in the grounds of his house, after the death of his wife in 1823, who he had met in Tibberton. The 'square' was closed by railings and gates, leaving a view to the south-east. In 1970 Islington Council purchased the square, which had become run-down. The houses were restored as flats and the garden was newly landscaped and levelled and new railings erected. The new scheme was opened in July 1979 at a ceremony attended by Sir Hugh Wontner, a descendent of Thomas Wontner.