A water tower used to straddle the road from Chislehurst to Bromley until it was demolished in 1963 as one of the last acts of the Chislehurst and Sidcup UDC. It marked the entrance to the Wythes Estate in Bickley, but its narrow archway meant that double-decker buses were not able to be used on the route.
Governance
The Chislehurst civil parish formed an urban district of Kent from 1894 to 1934.[3] In 1934 it became part of the Chislehurst and Sidcup Urban District,[4] which was split in 1965 between the London boroughs of Bromley and Bexley. Chislehurst Ward has three councillors on Bromley Council: the first non-Conservative party candidates returned for the ward were Chislehurst Matters members elected in 2022.[5]
Demographics
As of 2021, Chislehurst is recorded as having a population of roughly 15,600. 35.3% of people in Chislehurst were recorded as being between the ages of 35 and 59, below the borough average of 36.4%. The largest religious group is Christian at 51.5%, above the borough average of 48.3%, with the second largest group being No religion at 33.8%, below the borough average of 37.3%. The largest ethnic group in Chislehurst is White, comprising 81.4% of the population, above the borough average of 76.5%, with the second largest being Asian/Asian British who make up 7.9% of the population, below the borough average of 8.3%.[1]
Geography
Chislehurst is largely a residential area.[6] Chislehurst West, previously known as "Pricking" or "Prickend", includes the biggest of the ponds and the High Street.
Chislehurst Common (and nearby St Paul's Cray Common) were saved from development in 1888 following campaigns by local residents. They were a popular destination for bank holiday trips in the early 20th century, and now provide a valuable green space. Nearby Petts Wood, Hawkwood and Scadbury have also been preserved as open spaces following local campaigns.
A 2017 list shows there have been 596.4 hectares (1,474 acres) in Chislehurst designated as conservation areas since 1971.[7] The designation of conservation areas is one of the many planning tactics used in the United Kingdom that includes local planning authorities (LPA's), with plans working in conjunction such as the listing of buildings and scheduled monuments, metropolitan Green Belts, National Trusts, and "Tree Preservation Orders". These give stringent policies against development with statues and non-statutory orders. The destruction of many trees and Victorian style buildings caused by bombing during WWII, as well as the ensuing building boom, made protection even more critical. The result is the protection of areas by preventing arbitrary destruction from large as well as small-scale development that can cause a creeping effect into side spaces and back gardens.[8]
Camden Place (now Chislehurst Golf Club, 51° 24′ 40.05″N 0° 3′ 55.69″E ) takes its name from the antiquaryWilliam Camden, who lived in the former house on the site from c. 1609 until his death in 1623. The present house was built shortly before 1717, and it was given a number of additions in the late 18th and very early 19th centuries by the architect George Dance the younger.[10]
There is a memorial to the Prince Imperial on Chislehurst Common, and the area's connections with the imperial family are found in many road names and in the local telephone code, 467, which in its earlier format corresponded to the letters IMP (for imperial).
War Memorial
Chislehurst War Memorial
The Chislehurst War Memorial was dedicated on 17 October 1920. It commemorates the fallen of World War I and World War II.[13][14]
^The baby was christened Rose Cavena Wakeman according to the official guides. Birth records show that a baby called Rose L.C. Wakeman was born in Chislehurst in 1946, which is consistent with the story.
^Bridget Cherry and Nikolaus Pevsner, London 2: South, Buildings of England (Harmondsworth, 1983), p. 180.
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