Chinbrook
Encyclopedia
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
; it is located 14 km (8.7 mi) southeast of Charing Cross
Charing Cross
Charing Cross denotes the junction of Strand, Whitehall and Cockspur Street, just south of Trafalgar Square in central London, England. It is named after the now demolished Eleanor cross that stood there, in what was once the hamlet of Charing. The site of the cross is now occupied by an equestrian...
and is in the southeast corner of the London Borough of Lewisham
London Borough of Lewisham
The London Borough of Lewisham is a London borough in south-east London, England and forms part of Inner London. The principal settlement of the borough is Lewisham...
on its boundary with the London Borough of Bromley
London Borough of Bromley
The London Borough of Bromley is a London borough of south east London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in the borough is Bromley.-Geography:...
. Chinbrook lies between Grove Park and Mottingham
Mottingham
Mottingham is a district of south London, England; located at the convergence of the London Borough of Bromley, the London Borough of Lewisham and the London Borough of Greenwich...
, approximately half a mile east of Grove Park centre and is generally considered part of Grove Park.
Most of Chinbrook including the main crossroads falls within the London Borough of Lewisham and under the postcode district
UK postcodes
The postal codes used in the United Kingdom are known as postcodes. They are alphanumeric and were introduced by the Royal Mail over a 15-year period from 11th October 1959 to 1974...
, although immediately northeast from the crossroads is the border with the London Borough of Bromley and the postcode district. The River Quaggy
River Quaggy
The River Quaggy is an urban river, 17 km in length, passing through the south-east London boroughs of Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham; it is known as the Kyd Brook, in its upper reaches...
flows northward through Chinbrook and forms part of the borough and postal boundaries there.
Transport
The main crossroads has traffic lights and several bus stops close by. The main road, the B226, passes East to West through the hamlet; westward being Chinbrook Road toward Grove Park joining Baring Road (A2212)A2212 road
The A2212 road is a 4-digit, non-primary A road in southeast London, England; it is long and runs in a north to south direction from Lee Green, to Bromley passing through Grove Park, Downham, Plaistow and Sundridge...
, and northeast, Grove Park Road toward Mottingham. Marvels Lane is a smaller road passing north to south; southward it joins Dunkery Road, which goes eastward also towards Mottingham; northward Marvels Lane joins Burnt Ash Hill which goes through the northern part of Grove Park towards Lee
Lee, London
Lee is a district of south London, England, located mostly in the London Borough of Lewisham and partly in the London Borough of Greenwich. The district lies to the east of Lewisham, one mile west of Eltham, and one mile south of Blackheath village...
. There are footpaths in the area mostly running north to south along the green area following the River Quaggy
River Quaggy
The River Quaggy is an urban river, 17 km in length, passing through the south-east London boroughs of Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham; it is known as the Kyd Brook, in its upper reaches...
, and some form part of the Green Chain Walk and Capital Ring
Capital Ring
The Capital Ring is a strategic walking route that is being promoted by London's 33 local councils, led by the City of London Corporation in partnership with the Greater London Authority and its functional body for regional transport, Transport for London, through which much of the funding is...
.
London Buses
London Buses
London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London that manages bus services within Greater London, UK. Buses are required to carry similar red colour schemes and conform to the same fare scheme...
126, 124
London Buses route 124
London Buses route 124 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, United Kingdom. The service is currently contracted to Stagecoach London.-History:...
, and 273 pass through Chinbrook using the same roads: Chinbrook Road, Marvels Lane then Dunkery Road. The 284 bus begins its route here at nearby Grove Park Cemetery and travels along Marvels Lane and Chinbrook Road. The school bus 638 also passes through on Grove Park Road and Chinbrook Road. Grove Park is only half a mile to the west along Chinbrook Road and has more buses and a train station
Grove Park railway station
Grove Park railway station is a railway station in London, England. It is located on Baring Road within Travelcard Zone 4, and serves the areas of Grove Park and Downham in the London borough of Lewisham. The station was opened in 1871. Currently there are five platforms...
. Chinbrook, like Grove Park centre is in London Travelcard Zone 4
Travelcard Zone 4
Fare zone 4 is a zone of Transport for London's zonal fare system used for calculating the price of tickets for travel on the London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Railway and, since 2007, on National Rail services...
.
Amenities
Shops: Immediately west of the crossroads there is a parade of shops on the north side of Chinbrook road; the biggest shop here is a CostcutterCostcutter
Costcutter is based in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Poland under which there are supermarkets and local and urban convenience stores. The banner also has its own brand of goods and products which are sold alongside Nisa Today own-brand products and branded products.As of December 2006,...
small supermarket
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
or convenience store
Convenience store
A convenience store, corner store, corner shop, commonly called a bodega in Spanish-speaking areas of the United States, is a small store or shop in a built up area that stocks a range of everyday items such as groceries, toiletries, alcoholic and soft drinks, and may also offer money order and...
on the corner. Other shops include several take-aways, a newsagent
Newsagent
A newsagent's shop , newsagency or newsstand is a business that sells newspapers, magazines, cigarettes, snacks and often items of local interest. In Britain and Australia, these businesses are termed newsagents...
, off license and a beauty salon
Beauty salon
A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment dealing with cosmetic treatments for men and women...
. There was previously a large public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
with its own garden called Grove Park Tavern on the northeast corner of the main crossroads; this was demolished in the late 1990s and the site now contains retirement flats. Grove Park Tavern is still used sometimes to refer to the crossroads even though it no longer stands there; Transport for London continue to use it.
Chinbrook Meadows
Chinbrook Meadows sometimes Chinbrook Meadow in southeast London, England is one of Lewisham's public open spaces or parks in the south of Chinbrook and Grove Park in the London Borough of Lewisham and postcode district but next to the border with the London Borough of Bromley and the postcode...
there are also several private sports grounds, a youth club, and a Bannatyne's
Bannatyne's
Bannatyne's is the name of a UK based chain of health clubs, well known for being founded and co-directed by famous Scottish businessman Duncan Bannatyne OBE....
gym
Gym
The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, that mean a locality for both physical and intellectual education of young men...
–health club
Health club
A health club is a place which houses exercise equipment for the purpose of physical exercise.-Main workout area:...
, built in 2001 replacing an older sports club. These lie to the north and east of the crossroads within the London Borough of Bromley and the postcode district.
Marvels Lane Primary School is on Riddons Road in Grove Park Estate and backs onto Marvels Lane. The head teacher is Edward Dove.
Grove Park Cemetery
Grove Park Cemetery
Grove Park Cemetery is a cemetery in the London Borough of Lewisham.-Location:It is located near Grove Park on Marvels Lane, between Chinbrook Meadows and Marvels Wood, SE12.-Special interest:...
is found southeast of Chinbrook Meadows and Grove Park Estate; its entrance is at the southern end of Marvels Lane.
Jubilee International Church
Jubilee International Church
Jubilee International Church is based in London, England and was established in 1992 with just 7 members in Clapham, London SW4. They then purchased and modernised a former 1935 Baptist church building and moved in 2006 to the present location at Mayeswood Road in the Chinbrook and the former...
and South London Christian College are both located at 72a Mayeswood Road in the Grove Park Estate, and back onto Chinbrook Meadows. This is a Christian Pentecostal church, part of the Assemblies of God
Assemblies of God
The Assemblies of God , officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 140 autonomous but loosely-associated national groupings of churches which together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination...
, with a leadership training centre for international students. The leader is Rev Dr Femi Olowo.
Residential
There is a mixture of terraced houses, semi-detached houses and flats on the through roads and cul-de-sac roads. There is a building on the northeast corner of the main crossroads containing many retirement flats, this was built in the late 1990s where Grove Park Tavern previously stood. There are two main housing estates in the area.Grove Park Estate, to the southwest of the crossroads is a group of roads all with terraced houses, and some semi-detached houses between Marvels Lane and Chinbrook Meadows that was built by Lewisham council between 1926 and 1929.
Chinbrook Estate, to the southeast of the crossroads is several small roads, has two high tower blocks plus many smaller terrace houses and flats and two community centres. It lies in the south east corner of the Grove Park ward but comes under SE9 not SE12 like most of Grove Park. It is surrounded by and has entrances on Marvels Lane, Dunkery Road, Grove Park Road and Mottingham Sports Ground.
Chinbrook Meadows
Chinbrook Meadows sometimes Chinbrook Meadow is one of Lewisham's public open spaces or parksLewisham parks and open spaces
The London Borough of Lewisham, like all the London boroughs has many parks and open spaces within its boundaries, part of the "green lung" of London...
in the south of Chinbrook and Grove Park, the area was previously occupied by Chinbrook Farm, a dairy farm. The park was first formally opened to the public in 1929 and was then a children's play area of 8 acres (32,374.9 m²), on the edge of the recently built Grove Park Estate; London County Council
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
purchased a further 23 acres (93,077.8 m²); and the larger area was opened to the public in June 1937.
The majority of the park is maintained short grass with footpaths and lined with tall trees and bisected by the River Quaggy
River Quaggy
The River Quaggy is an urban river, 17 km in length, passing through the south-east London boroughs of Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham; it is known as the Kyd Brook, in its upper reaches...
; the grass often has markings for football pitches, a cricket ground and other sports and is used by local schools for sports days. Chinbrook meadows also contains public toilets, public concrete tennis courts, and a football pitch and basketball court in one, plus a children's play area with a paddling pool. Some of the many footpaths crossing the park form part of The Green Chain Walk and Capital Ring
Capital Ring
The Capital Ring is a strategic walking route that is being promoted by London's 33 local councils, led by the City of London Corporation in partnership with the Greater London Authority and its functional body for regional transport, Transport for London, through which much of the funding is...
. The Quaggy River flows northward through Chinbrook Meadows. In the 1960s the river within the park was channelized into a long straight concrete culvert
Culvert
A culvert is a device used to channel water. It may be used to allow water to pass underneath a road, railway, or embankment. Culverts can be made of many different materials; steel, polyvinyl chloride and concrete are the most common...
s to alleviate flooding and was closed off behind tall hedges and iron fences, this cut the park in two with the larger part to the east of the river. In the early 2000s however the concrete channel with its fences and hedges was demolished and river was remodeled to give a natural, meandering appearance with a small flood plain; this was to encourage wild plants and animals back to the area and to be more pleasant and attractive for the public. There are several foot bridges with wooden hand rails over the river, that replaced the concrete ones with iron fences. The regeneration was completed on 1 October 2002 and cost a reported £1.1million.
The small southern part of Chinbrook Meadows became allotments
Allotment (gardening)
An allotment garden, often called simply an allotment, is a plot of land made available for individual, non-professional gardening. Such plots are formed by subdividing a piece of land into a few or up to several hundreds of land parcels that are assigned to individuals or families...
, but many were in disuse in the early 1990s and a government grant paid for trees to be planted on some of the area, although some of the allotments still remain in use. The park is around half a mile long north to south, half as wide and is surrounded by Chinbrook Road to the north, Mayeswood Road to the east and the railway line to the south and west, under the railway line there is a pedestrian subway
Subway (underpass)
In England and Wales, the Republic of Ireland, Hong Kong and some Commonwealth countries , the term subway normally refers to a specially constructed underpass for pedestrians and/or cyclists beneath a road or railway, allowing them to reach the other side in safety.The term is also used in the...
tunnel that crosses the borough boundary into Bromley and links the park to a much smaller green area southwest of the main park. The footpath that leaves the southeast corner of Chinbrook Meadows is part of the Green Chain Walk passes the allotments then Grove Park Cemetery before entering Elmstead Woods. Gates to the park are opened at 08:00 every morning and closing times range from 16:30 to 21:00 in the evening depending on the time of year.
Toponomy
The name Chinbrook is derived from "Chin Brook" which was an alternative name for the Quaggy River at the turn of the twentieth century. The place KidbrookeKidbrooke
Kidbrooke is a district of South East London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.The district takes its name from the Kyd Brook, a watercourse which runs from Orpington to Lewisham, by which point it is part of the River Quaggy...
is also on the River Quaggy and its name is also derived from an alternative name for the river, "Kyd Brook". Chinbrook is occasionally mispronounced and misspelled "Chimbrook".