Avery Hill

Avery Hill
Avery Hill Park hothouse
Avery Hill
Location within Greater London
London borough
Ceremonial countyGreater London
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townLONDON
Postcode districtSE9
Post townSIDCUP
Postcode districtDA15
Dialling code020
PoliceMetropolitan
FireLondon
AmbulanceLondon
UK Parliament
London Assembly

Avery Hill is an area of South East London mainly within Royal Borough of Greenwich, and with some parts in the London Borough of Bexley. It is located east of Eltham and north west of Sidcup. It is believed that the area is named after an aviary formerly located in the area.[2]

Avery Hill House

Avery Hill House was a palatial dwelling built by John Thomas North (1842–1896), who had made his fortune in the sodium nitrate trade in Chile.[2][3]

Following North's death the house was acquired by the London County Council in July 1902 and its grounds extended to create Avery Hill Park in 1903. In 1906 North's house became Avery Hill College of Education, later incorporating two neighbouring buildings.[4] Within a year of its foundation, the residential college had become the largest of LCC's training colleges and was frequently oversubscribed; in 79 years it trained over 15,000 teachers.[3] In 1985 the college merged with Thames Polytechnic, renamed the University of Greenwich in 1993.[4] As well as the original house (Mansion site), the university had extensive facilities at the nearby Southwood site.

In 2020 the university vacated the Mansion site at Avery Hill, while remaining on the Southwood site.[5] A Harris Academy boys’ secondary school is planned to open on the Mansion site in 2026.[6]

Winter Garden

The house is notable for an indoor winter garden,[7] the second largest Victorian glasshouse in the UK after Kew Gardens' Temperate House. It forms part of one of the most extensive and expensive garden arrangements ever constructed as part of a private house in England. In the early 21st century, the Winter Garden fell into neglect,[8] but is now open to the public after restoration work.[7]

Avery Hill Park

Avery Hill Park is a public park.[7] Since 2010, the park has hosted a Parkrun on Saturdays. Originally 'Greenwich parkrun', the borough's first parkrun, it was renamed 'Avery Hill parkrun' in March 2025.[9]

Transport

Rail

The closest National Rail stations to Avery Hill are Falconwood and New Eltham.

Buses

Avery Hill is served by the following TFL bus routes.

Nearby areas

Avery Hill borders Falconwood to the north and north east, Blackfen to the east, Sidcup to the south east, New Eltham to the south and south west and Eltham to the west and north west.

References

  1. ^ "Location of Eltham and Chislehurst". parliament.uk. July 2024. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
  2. ^ a b Willey, Russ. Chambers London Gazetteer, p 15-16.
  3. ^ a b Whitehead, Maurice. History of Education Quarterly 31, no. 1 (1991): 144-46. Accessed 6 July 2020. doi:10.2307/368811. See online summary and excerpt
  4. ^ a b "Avery Hill, Greenwich". Hidden London. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  5. ^ "Phase 1: Avery Hill Improvements, 6 June, Mansion site". University of Greenwich. 30 May 2019. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
  6. ^ "Meet the Executive Principal". Harris Academy. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
  7. ^ a b c Avery Hill Winter Garden. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Eltham's beautiful winter garden set for abandonment". thisislocallondon.co.uk. 29 October 2017. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
  9. ^ "Avery Hill parkrun #732 – 8th March 2025". Parkrun.org.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
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