Description
St Stephen's Church was built in 1867 when new parishes were created in the large parish of Kensington to serve the growing population, as house development accelerated. A small area of the church garden is publicly accessible along Southwell Street with gravel, flower beds and a number of trees. A stone seat was installed here in memory of Susan Sadleir (d.1991). A further area of garden to the south of the church is not publicly accessible, where a Church Room has been built and the trees here have Tree Preservation Orders.
Practical Information
| Site location | Southwell Gardens/Gloucester Road |
|---|---|
| Postcode | SW7 4RL |
| What3Words | ///unless.trades.prom |
| Type of Site | Churchyard |
| Borough | Kensington & Chelsea |
| Open to Public | Partially |
| Opening Times | access to area adjoining Southwell Gardens unrestricted |
| Public Transport | Tube: Gloucester Road (Piccadilly, Circle, District). Bus: 49, 74 |
| Research Updated | 1 April 2012 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
By the mid C19th the parish of Kensington covered a large area, the population of which had grown considerably with the rapid acceleration of house building. In 1863 the vicar of Kensington, the Revd John Sinclair, decided to establish new parishes to serve these new congregations, and the parish of St Stephen was created to serve the area around Cromwell and Gloucester Roads. Initially an iron mission church was provided in 1866, its site opposite Gloucester Road station. A permanent church, St Stephen's, was built in 1867 designed by Joseph Peacock, 'a particularly successful picturesque composition with the small scale elements giving an Arts and Crafts Gothic character' (Conservation Area Policy Statement). The church has a memorial to the American poet TS Eliot (1888-1965), who was a church warden at St Stephen for 25 years, and worshiped here until his death. Born in St Louis, Missouri, Eliot had come to London in 1914.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ261789 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | Church of England |
| Site Management | Church |
| Dates | 1860 |
| Listed Structures | LBII: St Stephen's 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 | Kensington & Chelsea |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | De Vere, Kensington Court and Cornwall |
| Tree Preservation Order | Yes - group TPO |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| 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
The development of this area of Kensington took place largely after the Great Exhibition of 1851 when Parliament decided to establish a 'cultural centre' and grand residential estate. The land was owned by the 1851 Commissioners and a number of private estates, including the Harrington estate, where building began in 1855 on the site of former market gardens. The gardens were laid out c.1860 for the use of those living in surrounding houses, this privilege extended to those in the near neighbourhood. In WWII there were air raid shelters under the gardens. Since early 1990s the residents have been restoring the gardens, and paths have been re-drawn and gravelled to the original layout. In the interim additional planting had taken place, including a grove of 12 silver birch trees for the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977.
Emperor's Gate was built on land once part of the Edwardes Estate owned by Lord Kensington, which had been sold when the railway was constructed here in the 1860s. Surplus to railway requirements, it was sold and developed for housing in 1872-5. The terraces overlook the small railed garden, which has grass, seating and a number of trees, including horse chestnut.
Cornwall Gardens is an elongated garden square with three private communal garden enclosures. It was developed by Thomas and John Broadwood, whose family owned the land, and became famous as piano makers. The gardens have magnificent plane trees dating from the 1870s and are overlooked by Italianate terraces probably designed by the Broadwood estate surveyor Thomas Cundy III. The central garden has the original arched cast-iron entrance gates but the perimeter railings were removed during WWII, and the gardens are bounded by privet hedges.