Description
Valence House was once the manor house for the largest estate in Dagenham. The present building is early C17th and stood in 5 acres of gardens and orchards, surrounded by a moat. In 1921 the London County Council purchased Valence lands for the Becontree Housing Estate but in 1926 leased then sold the house and immediate grounds to Dagenham UDC; it now contains the Council's Museum and O'Leary Gallery. Fragments of the north and east edges of the grounds survive, as does part of the angle of the moat; the grounds have C19th Holm oak and yew, and a period-style Herb Garden opened in 1992 in the former Victorian kitchen garden. In 1926, the LCC laid out 24 acres of the old Valence lands as a public park, two-thirds for informal recreation with open space, grass and some trees. Various facilities were provided, a bandstand and formal planting, but the majority has now gone, including its open-air swimming pool, which closed in 1971.
Practical Information
| Site location | Becontree Avenue/Valence Wood Road, Dagenham, Essex |
|---|---|
| Postcode | RM8 |
| What3Words | ///skin.ever.post |
| Type of Site | Public Park |
| Borough | Barking & Dagenham |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | 7.15am - dusk. House & grounds closed until late June 2010 for major refurbishment. |
| Facilities | Park: children's play area, 4 football pitches, fishing lake (old moat). |
| Public Transport | Rail: Chadwell Heath then bus. Tube: Becontree (District) then bus. Bus: 5, 62, 128, 173, 174, 364. |
| Research Updated | 1 April 2009 |
| Last Updated | 19 October 2026 |
Full description
Valence House is the only remaining manor house in Dagenham. The Manor of Valence was the largest estate in Dagenham, extended in the C14th and C15th by the addition of 3 other estates: Gallance, Frizlands and East Hall. The first recorded incumbent was Robert Dyre or Dynes who sold it in 1284 to Sir Thomas Weyland, whose widow left it to Agnes de Valence. In 1309 she bequeathed her interest in the estate to her brother Aylmer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke, from whom the property takes its name. It was owned in the C15th by Oriel College, Oxford, who granted the property to St Anthony's Hospital in Threadneedle Street in return for 25 marks a year. Ownership passed to the Dean and Canons of Windsor in 1475 when they were granted custody of St Anthony's by the King, and in 1867 it was vested in the Ecclesiastical Commissioners.
The site of a manor house for over 600 years, the present Valence House was largely built in the early C17th and stood in 5 acres of gardens and orchards, surrounded by a moat which had probably been created to protect an earlier house. In 1921 the LCC purchased Valence lands for the Becontree Housing Estate but in 1926 leased then sold Valence House with its immediate grounds to Dagenham Urban District Council for use as council offices, and then as Dagenham Libraries headquarters (1938-1974). The house was then extended eastwards and part of the grounds became a works yard. Valence House now houses the Council's Museum and the O'Leary Gallery (opened in 1991) and contains the famous Fanshawe family portraits, which were donated to the Borough in 1963 by General Aubrey B Fanshawe, and include work by the C17th and C18th court painters Sir Peter Lely and Sir Godfrey Kneller. Fragments of the north and east edges of the grounds survive, as does part of the angle of the moat which is now used as a fishing lake.
Valence House is surrounded by C19th planting of holm oak and yew; a new period-style Herb Garden was opened in 1992 in the former Victorian kitchen garden to the west of the house, designed by historic garden consultant Virginia Nightingale. This has a central pergola surrounded by formal beds of roses, herbs and silver leafed plants, as well as more informal planting.
In 1926, 24 acres of the old Valence lands adjacent to Valence House Grounds were purchased from the LCC and laid out as a public park. Two-thirds of Valence Park was maintained 'principally for unorganised games for juveniles' with open space, grass and some trees, including a line of old elms which have since died. Various facilities were provided including tennis courts, sand pit, paddling pool, bandstand and formal planting along Valence Wood Road, the majority of which is now gone. An open air swimming pool known as Valence Park Lido was built in 1931, its architect T P Francis. It was partly paid for by an Unemployment Scheme Grant and cost £11,000, but its last season was summer 1971 and it closed and later demolished when the new Becontree Heath indoor pool opened in 1972. A new fountain was provided in 1958 at cost of £75. An elaborate children's model traffic area on a former allotments site was on the Borough Engineer A. E. Stickland's drawing board in the late 1940s and 1950s, but unfortunately was not carried out. Other proposals not completed include play areas, and an open-air roller skating rink.
The site of a manor house for over 600 years, the present Valence House was largely built in the early C17th and stood in 5 acres of gardens and orchards, surrounded by a moat which had probably been created to protect an earlier house. In 1921 the LCC purchased Valence lands for the Becontree Housing Estate but in 1926 leased then sold Valence House with its immediate grounds to Dagenham Urban District Council for use as council offices, and then as Dagenham Libraries headquarters (1938-1974). The house was then extended eastwards and part of the grounds became a works yard. Valence House now houses the Council's Museum and the O'Leary Gallery (opened in 1991) and contains the famous Fanshawe family portraits, which were donated to the Borough in 1963 by General Aubrey B Fanshawe, and include work by the C17th and C18th court painters Sir Peter Lely and Sir Godfrey Kneller. Fragments of the north and east edges of the grounds survive, as does part of the angle of the moat which is now used as a fishing lake.
Valence House is surrounded by C19th planting of holm oak and yew; a new period-style Herb Garden was opened in 1992 in the former Victorian kitchen garden to the west of the house, designed by historic garden consultant Virginia Nightingale. This has a central pergola surrounded by formal beds of roses, herbs and silver leafed plants, as well as more informal planting.
In 1926, 24 acres of the old Valence lands adjacent to Valence House Grounds were purchased from the LCC and laid out as a public park. Two-thirds of Valence Park was maintained 'principally for unorganised games for juveniles' with open space, grass and some trees, including a line of old elms which have since died. Various facilities were provided including tennis courts, sand pit, paddling pool, bandstand and formal planting along Valence Wood Road, the majority of which is now gone. An open air swimming pool known as Valence Park Lido was built in 1931, its architect T P Francis. It was partly paid for by an Unemployment Scheme Grant and cost £11,000, but its last season was summer 1971 and it closed and later demolished when the new Becontree Heath indoor pool opened in 1972. A new fountain was provided in 1958 at cost of £75. An elaborate children's model traffic area on a former allotments site was on the Borough Engineer A. E. Stickland's drawing board in the late 1940s and 1950s, but unfortunately was not carried out. Other proposals not completed include play areas, and an open-air roller skating rink.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ480865 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | LB Barking & Dagenham |
| Site Management | Parks & Countryside Rangers Service |
| Dates | C15th; Valence Park 1926 |
| Designers | Park: H E Lightfoot, Dagenham Council Engineer & Surveyor. Herb Garden: Virginia Nightingale |
| Listed Structures | LBII*: Valence House |
| 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 | Barking & Dagenham |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | Yes (Valence House Gardens - Local Importance) |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | No |
| Other LA Designation | Protected Open Space; Schedule B Site |
Gallery
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Nearby parks and gardens
Heath Park Estate was built in 1951 for Dagenham Council at the time of the Festival of Britain, and its design reflects the new ideas for urban housing then prevalent. Architects Norman & Dawbarn won a Festival of Britain Award for the estate, which was laid out on 39.3 acres of land. It provided 279 dwellings in a mixture of cottages and 3, 4 or 5-storey blocks of flats with areas of open space, lawns and gardens to provide a sense of spaciousness. At the north end of the estate old people's cottages were set around a green. Heath Park Open Space provided 6 acres of amenity space near the community centre.
Parsloes Park derives its name from the Passelewe family, who held the land from c.1250. In 1901 part of the estate was leased to the National Trotting Horse Breeders Association for an American-style trotting track. In 1923 the London County Council acquired the estate to build the Becontree Housing Estate, whose official completion was celebrated by the opening of Parsloes Park in July 1935, the central open space of the new estate. Much of the 1930s layout remains. The northern end consisted of playing fields, with large public gardens in the south-west, and the remainder levelled as unrailed open space partly for sports but mostly ‘free for people to walk and children to play upon'.
Becontree Heath, probably the meeting place of the Saxon Hundred Court, was ancient commonland, and the area remained rural until the 1920s. Although much is since built over, some remains as open space. In 1931 a portion of the land was transferred to Dagenham UDC by Special Act of Parliament, extinguishing common rights, and was levelled, drained and planted for public recreation, opening as Central Park. The land north of Wood Lane was largely used for allotment gardens in the C20th, but by 1971 Wantz Boating Lake had been created to the south. The open land today is used for school playing fields, children's recreational facilities and a golf club, which uses the former boating lake as an Aqua driving range, the only one of its kind.
