Inventory Site Record

The Church of the Holy Innocents was built in 1890/1, a Gothic style building designed by James Brooks. The reorganisation of the church interior and redevelopment of the old parish hall site as sheltered housing in the late 1980s allowed the churchyard gardens to be redeveloped by Revd. Murray Grant. The garden adjacent to Dorville Crescent contains several mature plane trees, but additional shrubs have been planted. The old west door approach has been planted with colourful perennials and shrubs. The area to the south of the church has been grassed over, and shrubs planted along the wall of the church.

Site location:

Paddenswick Road

Postcode:

W6 0UB

What 3 Words:

metals.parade.being

Type of site:

Churchyard

Borough:

Hammersmith & Fulham

Open to public?

Yes

Opening times:

unrestricted

Special conditions:

Facilities:

Events:

Concerts

Public transport:

Tube: Ravenscourt Park (District). Bus: 266.

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Research updated:

01/09/2011

Last minor changes:

19/07/2023

Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news. www.hisj.co.uk

The Church of Holy Innocents is on the former site of Paddenswick Green, once a small hamlet in what was a rural area until the C19th. By the late C18th Hammersmith had grown to be an important settlement on the Great West Road, originally a Roman road, which led west from London towards Bath. There were a number of small hamlets including those at Paddenswick Green and Starch Green, and grand houses had been built by wealthy people who were attracted by the healthy reputation of the area. It otherwise remained largely rural, with pasture and arable land, nurseries and orchards, until the mid to late C19th when house building began in earnest. In 1869 the London and South Western Railway constructed the line from Waterloo to Richmond with stations opening at what is now Ravenscourt Park (originally known as Shaftesbury Road) and Turnham Green. Holy Innocents Church was among the churches, schools and other facilities provided to serve the growing population, and by the early C20th the area had been built up much as it appears today. Opposite Holy Innocents' Church is John Betts' School, a charity school built in 1859 at the behest of Dr John Betts (1799-1875) whose Almshouses, John Betts House (q.v.) were built in 1964 on land that Betts had bequeathed that the Hammersmith United Charities held as investment property.

Sources consulted:

Bridget Cherry and Nikolaus Pevsner, 'The Buildings of England London 3: North West' (Penguin, 1999 ed) p201; LB Hammersmith & Fulham 'Ravenscourt and Starch Green Conservation Area Character Profile', 1999

Grid ref:

TQ225790 (522600,179060)

Size in hectares:

Site ownership:

Church of England

Site management:

Church of England

Date(s):

1890/1; 1980s

Designer(s):

James Brooks (church), Revd Murray Grant (recent planting)

Listed structures:

LBII: Holy Innocents 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:

Yes

Conservation Area name:

Ravenscourt and Starch Green

Tree Preservation Order:

Yes

Nature Conservation Area:

No

Green Belt:

No

Metropolitan Open Land:

No

Special Policy Area:

No

Other LA designation:

None