Over £100k boost for historic lodge at Nunhead Cemetery

18 October 2022

Southwark Council and Friends of Nunhead Cemetery are delighted to announce that plans to fully restore Nunhead Cemetery’s East Lodge are one step closer thanks to a £100,000 development grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The Grade II Listed East Lodge is currently on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk Register. The project, which has received initial support* from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, aims to reinstate the building as a welcoming gateway to the cemetery with a new café, community space, and new base for Friends of Nunhead Cemetery and their volunteers.

A new role will also be created to lead and grow the existing events designed to engage residents across all communities, such as oral history sessions, exhibitions and art events.

Thanks to National Lottery players, the development funding will help Southwark Council and Friends of Nunhead Cemetery progress their plans to apply for a full Heritage Fund grant at a later date.

The restoration of East Lodge is a council commitment within the Borough Plan and once complete, the council will have invested over £2m in the project.

Nunhead Cemetery is the largest of the ‘Magnificent Seven’ cemeteries established in London between 1832 and 1841. Boasting its original layout and character, it features over 44,000 memorials and is the final resting place for around 290,000 people.

With 52 acres of diverse woodland, grassland and wetland environments, the cemetery is now a haven of peace and tranquillity for both wildlife and people. It is a Local Nature Reserve and is part of the Green Chain Walk providing a respite from the surrounding urban landscape.

Cllr Catherine Rose, Cabinet Member for Parks, Streets & Clean Air, said: “Working with the local community, we are putting Nunhead Cemetery on the map as a leafy oasis steeped in history that is accessible to everyone. Restoring the East Lodge and opening it up to the community is an important part of the puzzle, so we are delighted to have the support of the Heritage Fund.”

Jeremy Partington, Chair of Trustees at Friends of Nunhead Cemetery (FONC), added: “This grant will enable the realisation of FONC’s forty-year aspiration to see the East Lodge restored for community use and to further promote the heritage and ecological importance of this wonderful Victorian landscape for contemporary enjoyment.”

Page last updated: 18 October 2022