Wandsworth Borough is full of stunning landmarks and sites that are breathtaking to visit, even if you’re a local! Whether you love strolling through Battersea Park and Clapham Common, or want to find those picture perfect moments at The Royal Victoria Patriotic Building and Roehampton House, this list is for you! So, check out these 11 landmarks to explore and appreciate in Wandsworth borough!
Battersea Park
Battersea, London SW11 4NJ
Battersea Park is a paradise full of some of the most beautiful statues and sites in Wandsworth. The park opened in 1858 and has since been thriving as a popular spot for locals and tourists alike to take a quiet moment for themselves. You’ll find some incredible sights on your stroll through the park, including The Peace Pagoda - where you can find a feature blog on it here - and the Three Standing Figures by Henry Moore. The park is also home to a children’s zoo, a bandstand and outdoor sporting facilities to enjoy. It also overlooks the River Thames and provides a stunning view!
Yair Haklai
New Covent Garden Market
Nine Elms Ln, Nine Elms, London SW8 5BH
New Covent Garden Market is a must visit as a Wandsworth landmark, being the largest wholesale fruit, vegetable, and flower market in the United Kingdom! It covers 57 acres of land and is home to over 200 fruit, vegetable, and flower companies for locals to support and browse. The main feature here is The Flower Market, that is not only visited by the public, but by around 75% of florists in London to stock up their stores! The market also provides ingredients for many of London’s top top restaurants, hotels, schools, prisons, hospitals, and catering businesses!
EG Focus
Battersea Power Station SW8 - Giclée Art Print
Balham 90s Style Unisex T-Shirt
Clapham Common
Clapham Common, Windmill Dr, London SW4 9DE
Clapham Common is another fantastic park that must be a staple when exploring Clapham. It is 220 acres of lush green space with three ponds and a Victorian bandstand. The park itself actually straddles Wandsworth and Lambeth borough and it is a wonderful spot to take a peaceful walk or a scenic run. It’s history involves having grand houses built in the 1790s for members of the Clapham Sect of evangelical reformers and, during World War II, there were storage bunkers built on the Battersea Rise side of the common, where two mounds still remain! Clapham Common also features the largest bandstand in London, which is a Grade II listed building!
Ptamb
Battersea Power Station
188 Kirtling St, Nine Elms, London SW8 5BN
Arguably, one of the most recognisable landmarks in Wandsworth borough is Battersea Power Station. It’s a decommissioned coal-fired power station and is one of the largest brick buildings in the world, famously known for its striking art deco interior and decor. The iconic four chimney structure is comprised of two separate power stations named Battersea A and B and it was finally completed fully in 1955, following disruptions during World War II. Despite it being decommissioned, the power station is going through major transformations, including having apartments built so South Londoners can actually live inside! There are also several events throughout the year here, like a street food festival!
Alberto Pascual
Tooting Bec Lido
Tooting Bec Rd, London SW16 1RU
It may be a little chilly for outdoor swimming, but it’s still worth checking out the Tooting Bec Lido. One of the main reasons this has made our list, is because this lido is the largest freshwater swimming pool by surface in the United Kingdom, coming in at 100 yards long and 33 yards wide. It is a popular spot in the summer time to cool off and a great excuse for a staycation! You may not know, but this lido has been featured in famous films too, with the colourful changing cubicles seen in the film Snatch (2000), with Brad Pitt! It is also one of Britain’s oldest open air pools, having opened to the public back in 1906 as the Tooting Bathing Lake.
Rolyatam
Albert Bridge
Between Battersea and Chelsea
Albert Bridge is a road bridge that connects Battersea and Chelsea across the River Thames. It is an unusual design, with a hybrid of three different techniques all incorporated at different times of its construction: a cable-stayed bridge by Rowland Mason Ordish who built its original design, then between 1884 and 1887 Sir Joseph Bazalgette incorporated some elements of a suspension bridge, before the Greater London Council added two concrete piers, transforming the central span into a simple beam bridge in 1973. One of the most stunning aspects of this bridge is its appearance at night, as it’s lit up by 4000 LEDs, giving an attractive glow to the night sky.
Diliff
Battersea Arts Centre
Lavender Hill, London SW11 5TN
The Battersea Arts Centre is a Grade II listed building and a stunning performance space, where theatre companies will put on impressive shows and events. It was designed in 1891 by E. W. Mountford and opened in 1893 as Battersea Town Hall, before becoming a community arts centre in 1974. It is a unique and exciting experience to watch a show here, as it operates a ‘scratch’ method in its ‘ladder of development’ for the centre’s new work. This means the audiences will see shows in various stages of development, where the public are given the opportunity to give feedback and criticism!
Ewan Munro
I Heart Clapham Mug
Tooting Underground Station SW17 - Giclée Art Print
Royal Victoria Patriotic Building
John Archer Way, London SW18 3SX
The Royal Victoria Patriotic Building has lived many lives since its opening as an asylum for girls in 1859, to being a base for MI5 interrogations to eventually becoming a building to house flats and restaurants. If you want to know more about the history of this stunning and regal building, check out our deep dive here.
Herry Lawford / Royal Victoria Patriotic Building. Built 1859 / CC BY-SA 2.0
Tooting Market
21-23 Tooting High St, Tooting, London SW17 0SN
Home to some of the most delicious street food south of the River, Tooting Market is a must visit during your next lunch break in Wandsworth borough. The market has been established and thriving for over 80 years and is known as South London’s premier indoor market. Expect to find and discover dozens of independent traders, from food to boutique shops, record stores, hair salons and much more! There’s always something going on here, whether it's a Lampshade Making Workshop that interests you or Love Art Classes for Kids! Discover our favourite street food spots to check out at the market here.
Putney Bridge
Another stunning bridge in Wandsworth, Putney Bridge stretches across the River Thames to link with Fulham in the north. The birth of this bridge came about after Sir Robert Walpole crossed the river to see George I at Kingston on Thames. After difficulties Walpole encountered when taking the ferry involving a drunk waterman, he vowed to replace the ferry with a bridge: and so Putney Bridge was born! George II was also inconvenienced by the ferry and told Walpole he could use his influence to build the bridge. The bridge is surrounded by medieval parish churches: St Mary’s Church, Putney and All Saints Church, Fulham.
Credit: It's No Game
Roehampton House
Roehampton Ln, London SW15 5FH
Roehampton House is a Grade I listed building, built by architect Thomas Archer. Between 1915 and 1983, this grand house was occupied by Queen Mary’s Hospital during both world wars. The house remained unaltered since it’s construction between 1710 and 1712, until 1913, when Sir Edwin Lutyens made amendments to the main house and added north and south wings. Since 2010, the building has been transformed into a collection of apartments where residents can live in this grand house and be part of Wandsworth’s history.
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