Inventory Site Record

St Alban's Church may have originated as an C8th chapel built by King Offa, founder of St Alban's Abbey. The church was rebuilt in 1633/4 but was badly damaged in the Great Fire of 1666 and rebuilt by Wren, completed in 1685. Following bomb damage in WWII it was demolished in 1955 apart from the Tower, which was restored in 1964 and later converted to a house. It stands on an island site in the middle of Wood Street, with minimal landscaping. The churchyard had been to the north of the building, now entirely built over by roadway and buildings.

Previous / Other name:

St Alban Wood Street

Site location:

Wood Street

Postcode:

EC2V 7AF

What 3 Words:

nature.sock.plans

Type of site:

Public Open Land

Borough:

City of London

Open to public?

Yes

Opening times:

unrestricted

Special conditions:

Facilities:

Events:

Public transport:

Tube: St Paul's (Central); Tube: Moorgate (Hammersmith & City, Circle, Northern, Metropolitan). Rail: Moorgate

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Google Map    
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Research updated:

01/05/2010

Last minor changes:

14/07/2022

Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news. www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/openspaces

St Alban's Church may have originated as an C8th chapel built by King Offa, founder of St Alban's Abbey. In 1077 the 14th Abbot passed the church to the master of St James Hospital Westminster and in 1477 it transferred to the Provost and Fellows of Eton College. The church was rebuilt, attributed to Inigo Jones in 1633/4 but was badly damaged in the Great Fire of 1666 and rebuilt by Wren, completed in 1685. Once more restored in 1858/9 the church was badly bombed in World War II and was demolished in 1955 apart from the Tower, which was restored in 1964 and in 1984/5 converted to a house by Frederick Burn, Smith and Partners. It stands on an island site in the middle of Wood Street, with minimal landscaping including two small trees. The churchyard had been to the north of the building, now entirely built over by roadway and buildings.

Sources consulted:

Philip Norman, 'The London City Churches, Their Use, Their Preservation and Their Extended Use', The London Society, (1920s); Simon Bradley & Nikolaus Pevsner, 'The Buildings of England, London 1: The City of London', 1997 (1999 ed.); London Diocesan Advisory Committee for the Care of Churches data

Grid ref:

TQ323814 (532344,181477)

Size in hectares:

0.0156

Site ownership:

City of London Corporation

Site management:

Open Spaces Dept.

Date(s):

C8th onwards; 1960s

Designer(s):

Listed structures:

LBII*: Tower of former St Alban'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 Data

The information below is taken from the relevant Local Authority's planning legislation, which was correct at the time of research but may have been amended in the interim. Please check with the Local Authority for latest planning information.

On Local List:

No

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:

Strategic View - Consultation Area

St Alban's Tower, May 2010. Photo: S Williams

Click a photo to enlarge.