Blackfen is an area of south-east

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, England, north of

Sidcup Sidcup is an area of south-east London, England, primarily in the London Borough of Bexley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, bordering the London Boroughs of Bromley and Greenwich. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the ...

in the

London Borough of Bexley The London Borough of Bexley () is a London borough in south-east London, forming part of Outer London. It has a population of 248,287. The main settlements are Sidcup, Erith, Bexleyheath, Crayford, Welling and Old Bexley. The London Boro ...

. Prior to 1965 it was in the

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

. "Blackfen" means a black, marshy area. The soil is dark and fertile and the area around Blackfen Road and Wellington Avenue is prone to flooding in extreme conditions. The housing stock is almost exclusively owner-occupied houses of conventional British design. The sale of the Danson Estate in 1922 marked the beginning of a major period of house building in the area and most of the houses date from the 1930s.

Local services

Churches

The Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Rosary near the top end of Burnt Oak Lane was built in 1936. Originally part of the parish of St Stephen's, Welling, it became a parish Church in its own right in 1945. The Anglican Church of the Holy Redeemer in Days Lane, dedicated on 21 October 1933, is built entirely of steel and concrete. The architect was A.S.R. Ley. The Church describes itself as a "forward-looking, average Anglican congregation". The Good Shepherd Church on Blackfen Road is part of the parish of Holy Redeemer.

Pubs

At the junction of Blackfen Road and Westwood Lane, is the George Staples (formerly known as The Woodman). The original Woodman pub dates from 1845; the present building was completed in 1931. The pub has undergone several changes of character, including being promoted as a "Sports Bar". The new landlords have transformed the pub into the George Staples in order to counter the increasingly bad reputation The Woodman had developed. It is now being promoted as a family friendly pub. Half a mile west along the Blackfen Road, on the south side is the "Jolly Fenman", built in the 1950s. The Fenman was refurbished in February 2006 and again in 2017 and it offers table service for meals. For about 4 years in the mid 1980s this pub had its own in-house brewery. Just north towards Welling, in Westwood Lane, Bexley Borough's 3rd

Micropub A micropub is a very small, modern, one room pub founded on principles set up by Martyn Hillier of the first micropub, The Butchers Arms in Herne, Kent, which are "based upon good ale and lively banter". Definition A micropub, according to ...

opened in spring 2015 called The Broken Drum (named after an inn in one of

Terry Pratchett Sir Terence David John Pratchett (28 April 1948 – 12 March 2015) was an English humourist, satirist, and author of fantasy novels, especially comical works. He is best known for his '' Discworld'' series of 41 novels. Pratchett's first no ...

's novels). It has subsequently been awarded the prestigious SPBW London Pub of the Year 2018 award.

Library

The Blackfen Library moved from Cedar Avenue to newly refurbished premises on Blackfen Road in March 2005. There was some local controversy because of the character of the old library building and uncertainty as to whether the premises would be put to any use. In April 2016 Bexley Council handed over control of Blackfen Library to the New Generation Church Trust, and Blackfen Library became Blackfen Community Library.

Shopping

There are two principal shopping parades, on Blackfen Road and at The Oval. At the Oval, there are three restaurants and a number of other small shops and businesses. The crescent-shaped parade of shops includes flats above and fronts an oval-shaped unfenced public garden with paths, flower beds and ornamental trees. Both the parade, with Tudoresque details to the frontage, and this small municipal garden are included in a designated Conservation Area. Underneath the public garden is a large World War II air-raid shelter. The larger shopping centre of Blackfen lacks greenery or architectural finesse, but includes a large foodstore (Co-op) with free parking space next to a prominent flyover that carries the modern A2 Trunk Road. The Blackfen Road shops include a post office, several car sales showrooms and many small local businesses including cafés and fast food outlets, jewellers, clothing shops, hairdressers, building suppliers, cycle store and an independent funeral director. It benefits from direct bus links to larger shopping centres at Bexleyheath, Eltham, Sidcup, Welling and Woolwich.

Greenery

The

River Shuttle The River Shuttle is a small tributary of the River Cray in London, United Kingdom. The river rises at two or more springs between Avery Hill and Eltham in the Royal Borough of Greenwich at the junction of the permeable Blackheath Beds and the ...

flows eastward through Blackfen; along the river in this area are four parks/open spaces. In the order they appear on the course of the river, they are: Parish Wood, Holly Oak Wood Park, Willersley Park, and Marlborough Park.

Wyncham Stream Wyncham Stream (Also spelt Wincham Stream) is a small river within the London Boroughs of Bexley and Bromley in southeast London, England, United Kingdom. It is in length and is a tributary of the River Shuttle. The stream rises from several ...

flowing north joins the River Shuttle at Holly Oak Wood Park; there is a small wood on this stream called Beverley Wood.

Education

Blackfen School for Girls Blackfen School for Girls is a girls' secondary school and sixth form with academy status, located in Blackfen in the London Borough of Bexley, England. Although it is a girls school, the sixth form In the education systems of England, Nor ...

is at the eastern end of Blackfen Road. Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Primary School is in Holbeach Gardens. Days Lane Primary School is the largest primary school in the borough of Bexley and has approximately 650 children on its role. Sherwood Park Primary School is located off Sherwood Park Avenue and Ramillies Road. The

University of Greenwich , mottoeng = "To learn, to do, to achieve" , former_name = Woolwich Polytechnic(1890–1970)Thames Polytechnic(1970–1992) , established = , type = Public university , budget = £214.9 million (2020) , administrative_staff = , chancel ...

Avery Hill Campus is located less than 1 mile to the West of the area.

Transport

Blackfen is served by London Buses routes 51 to

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...

via

Welling Welling is an area of South East London, England, in the London Borough of Bexley, west of Bexleyheath, southeast of Woolwich and of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the historical county of Kent. E ...

and

Orpington Orpington is a town and area in south east London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is 13.4 miles (21.6 km) south east of Charing Cross. On the south-eastern edge of the Greater London Built-up Area, it is south of St Ma ...

via

, 132 to North Greenwich via

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The three wards of E ...

and to Bexleyheath, and B13 to

New Eltham New Eltham is an area of south east London, in the London Boroughs of Greenwich and Bexley. It lies south east of Eltham and north west of Sidcup. History New Eltham is a largely residential suburb of Greater London developed on former farmla ...

and Bexleyheath. The nearest

National Rail National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, an unincorporated association whose membership consists of the passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the ...

stations are and .

Nearby areas

Blackfen borders

to the north west, north and north east, Blendon to the east and south east,

to the south and

Avery Hill Avery Hill is an area of South East London mainly within Royal Borough of Greenwich, and with some parts in the London Borough of Bexley. It is located east of Eltham and north west of Sidcup. It is believed that the area is named after an aviar ...

to the south west and west.

References

External links

Ideal Homes, suburbia in focus: BlackfenBlackfen Website
{{LB Bexley Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Bexley Sidcup