Stanley Arts in South Norwood was designed by a Victorian instrument-maker who had never trained as an architect, fitted with electric windows in 1903, and dismissed by Pevsner as eccentric. It opens free for Open House on Sunday 13 September.
Most Open House listings are buildings someone qualified designed. This one is a Grade II-listed Edwardian hall that a man drew up himself, in his sixties, because he wanted South Norwood to have somewhere to hear music and argue about things.
The inventor who built his own theatre
William Ford Robinson Stanley was a self-taught inventor and manufacturer who made his fortune in drawing instruments. His straight-line dividing machine took first prize at the 1862 International Exhibition, and by 1903 the Stanley Works in South Norwood was the largest factory of its kind anywhere in the world.
Then he designed a public hall. No architect, no formal training, just an engineer’s confidence and a set of opinions. Nikolaus Pevsner later called it, memorably, “one of the most eccentric efforts anywhere at a do-it-yourself free-style”, which reads like an insult and functions as a recommendation.
The building went up in stages: main hall and gallery in 1903, clock tower and Upper Hall in 1904, the Technical Trade School in 1907 and the assembly and society rooms in 1909, the year Stanley died. Inside there is stained glass, a marble staircase inlaid with ceramics, cast iron fireplaces, a bespoke heating and cooling system, and windows he wired to open electrically, in 1903.
What’s open on the day
Everything happening on 13 September is free, and there are three things running:
- Guided tour, 10:00–11:20. The building proper, with the architectural oddities pointed out rather than left for you to spot
- The Future of Stanley Arts: Capital Conversations, 12:00–14:30. A talk and public consultation on the regeneration works coming to the building. This is the one where you get an actual say
- Guided tour, 15:00–16:20. The same tour again for anyone who cannot face a 10am start on a Sunday
There is a second date too. On Sunday 20 September, 14:00–16:00, Stanley Arts runs a walking tour of the South Norwood Heritage Zone, taking the story out of the building and into the streets Stanley effectively built around his factory.
Why the consultation is the interesting one
Stanley Halls very nearly went. When Harris Academy was developed on the site in 2007 the complex was carved up, and the remaining portion spent years with no clear future until local residents won a community asset transfer in 2015. The volunteer-run Stanley People’s Initiative took it on and rebranded as Stanley Arts in 2021.
So the consultation is not a formality. This is a building saved by the people who live near it, now asking those same people what should happen to it next. If you have ever grumbled about a local landmark being changed without anyone asking, this is the version where they ask.
The London x London Take: the BT Tower slots will be gone within minutes of booking opening and half of London will spend Open House queueing in the City. Stanley Arts is the opposite proposition: under twenty minutes by train from London Bridge, no crush, and a building genuinely unlike anything else on the programme because no professional was involved in designing it. Do the 10am tour, stay for the consultation, and you will have seen more and been asked your opinion, which is more than the Lloyd’s building will offer you.
Need to know
- Where: Stanley Arts, 12 South Norwood Hill, London SE25 6AB
- When: Sunday 13 September 2026, tours at 10:00 and 15:00, talk and consultation 12:00–14:30. Heritage Zone walking tour Sunday 20 September, 14:00–16:00
- Price: free, but you need a free Open House visitor account and must be logged in to book
- Access: step-free routes, accessible toilets, hearing loop, handrails, baby changing and gender-neutral facilities, with regular seated breaks on the tours
- Nearest station: Norwood Junction
- Booking: via the Open House programme
Planning the rest of the festival? Our guide to Open House Festival 2026 has the pick of the 621 buildings opening across the city, and things to do in Crystal Palace covers where to go afterwards.
