Fire-damaged Walworth Town Hall Reopens To The Public Following Years Of Restoration Work

A decade after it was badly damaged in a fire, Walworth Town Hall has reopened following extensive refurbishment and upgrade works.

Walworth Town Hall opened 160 years ago, in 1865, as Newington Vestry Hall. When Newington became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Southwark in 1900, the building served as Southwark Town Hall.

Following the local government shakeup in 1965, it ceased to be Southwark council’s headquarters and became council offices and home to the local Cuming Museum. However, the roof was badly damaged by fire in March 2013, and after being added to the Heritage at Risk register, plans were made to restore the building.

The restoration has now been completed, and the building has been reopened as the Walworth community space.

The restoration has provided a series of dedicated public spaces, including a community centre, a new public café and a restaurant within the central lobby. To financially support the building, new workspaces will support over 550 workers across a mix of flexible offices and coworking desks.

The full site comprises 50,000 sq ft, including the former town hall and adjoining former Newington Library and Cuming Museum. A new grand staircase and ground floor entrance onto Walworth Square introduces a prominent public face for the building, improving access and connecting the site to the nearby Sayer Street thoroughfare and the wider regeneration of Elephant and Castle.

The result combines elements of old and new by making references to the town hall’s 19th-century architecture while introducing modern features through the use of cross-laminated timber (CLT) to replace sections of the building damaged by the 2013 fire.

The former council chamber, which experienced irreversible fire and water damage, has been reconstructed with its vaulted ceiling in a modern interpretation of the original design. The subsequent increase in height allows the original second-floor gallery to be extended into a new triple-height space framed by a raw metal balustrade featuring a perforated pattern that echoes the decorative detail of the original railing.

Across the property, original oak floors are refinished with complementary herringbone parquet, while remaining walls have been carefully sanded, re-rendered and re-painted below the dado-line, but left noticeably exposed above. The former reference library has been restored according to its original design and materials.

Walworth Town Hall is the fifth space operated by General People, a management company focused on operating tailored workspaces for creatives. General People’s successful Business Incubator Programme, which allows young innovators to set up and develop their business ideas at no cost for 6 months while pairing them with mentors in the building, was launched at Expressway in the Royal Docks and is set to be implemented at Walworth.

Cllr Helen Dennis, Southwark’s Cabinet Member for New Homes and Sustainable Development, said: “I’m thrilled to reopen this incredible building which represents such an important part of Southwark’s history and heritage. I’m particularly pleased to see the completion of the new community space on the ground floor which will be run for local residents, and will be a wonderful resource for people of all ages. The Walworth Town Hall is a treasure for our local community and I’m delighted that it is now ready for people to use and enjoy.”