St Peter's Church, Streatham

St Peter’s Church, Streatham
51°25′55″N 0°06′53″W / 51.4319°N 0.1148°W / 51.4319; -0.1148Coordinates: 51°25′55″N 0°06′53″W / 51.4319°N 0.1148°W / 51.4319; -0.1148
Denomination Church of England
Website http://www.stpeters-streatham.org/
Architecture
Architect(s) Richard Drew & George Fellowes Prynne
Administration
Deanery Lambeth South Deanery
Archdeaconry Lambeth
Diocese Diocese of Southwark
Province Canterbury
Clergy
Vicar(s) Rev Peter Andrews

St Peter’s Church is an Anglican Church in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade II* listed building[1] and occupies a prominent position in Leigham Court Road, Streatham.

Parish

Until Streatham Hill and West Norwood railway stations were opened in 1856, the area that became St Peter’s parish was mainly rural, with some large villas along Leigham Court Road and Crown Lane. The advent of the railway that links these stations with Victoria stimulated residential development including additional large houses and also substantial numbers of more modest semi-detached and terraced properties.

The parish of St Peter, Streatham was formed from parts of the parishes of St Leonard, Streatham and St Luke's, West Norwood. In about 1866 a temporary iron church, dedicated to St Peter and St Paul was erected on the west side of Leigham Court Road, opposite the site of the present structure. The parish of St Peter was formed in 1870, the year in which the initial portion of the present church building, which had been designed by Richard Drew, was consecrated by Samuel Wilberforce, Bishop of Winchester. In 1886-7, after further funds had become available, the church was enlarged in accordance with plans by George Fellowes Prynne.[2][3]

In 1886, the population of St Peter's parish amounted to 2,889 and was served by three clergy. The total (morning and evening) attendance as a proportion of the parochial population at that time stood at 39.9%.[4] In 1901, the population of the parish had increased to 4,780 and the number of clergymen in the following year was still three with attendance at its services representing 19.5% of the parochial population.[5]

Based on statistics from the UK census, the Diocese of Southwark estimates the population of St Peter’s parish was 12,400 in 2001 and 14,300 in 2011.[6]

Building

St Peter’s Church is a Grade II* listed building[1] standing in a prominent position on the east side of Leigham Court Road immediately south of its junction with Glennie Road. The building takes full advantage of its position on rising ground facing a curve in the road. Much use is made of polychrome brickwork which, combined with clay tile roofing, minorets, varied fenestration, a stair-turret and a large wheel-window give the west frontage an asymmetrical but picturesque appearance. Taking advantage of the lie of the land, the ground floor of the west end of the building houses a set of parish rooms. The worship area occupies the upper part of the entire structure, being reached by a flight of steps and a ramp that lead to an entrance that opens on to the higher ground towards the east end of the site.[7]

The interior of the church was rearranged in the late 1980s under the direction of Derek Philips RIBA. The altar was moved to the west end of the building (which had originally been the baptistry) and the east end is now used as a day chapel with choir stalls.[8]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1065037)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
  2. ↑ http://www.stpeters-streatham.org/#/history-part-1/4532768330 Date accessed 26 December 2013.
  3. ↑ 'Norwood: Churches', Survey of London: volume 26: Lambeth: Southern area (1956), pp. 173-180. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=49780 Date accessed: 26 December 2013
  4. ↑ Cox, Jeffrey (1982). The English Churches in a Secular Society - Lambeth, 1870-1930. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 294. ISBN 0195030192.
  5. ↑ Cox, Jeffrey (1982). The English Churches in a Secular Society - Lambeth, 1870-1930. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 286. ISBN 0195030192.
  6. ↑ http://extranet.southwark.anglican.org/Unrestricted/OpenContent.aspx?id=b0bc03f501d54c29a34868c22667d64a
  7. ↑ Clarke, Basil F L (1966). Parish Churches of London. London: B T Batsford Ltd. p. 268.
  8. ↑ http://www.southwark.anglican.org/parishes/265p
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