The Lambeth Workhouse was a

workhouse In Britain, a workhouse () was an institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. (In Scotland, they were usually known as poorhouses.) The earliest known use of the term ''workhouse'' ...

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...

London London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The original workhouse opened in 1726 in Princes Road (later, Black Prince Road). From 1871 to 1873 a new building was constructed in Renfrew Road, Lambeth. The building was eventually turned into a hospital. The workhouse's former master's house and chapel are now occupied by the Cinema Museum which is a grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. The 19th-century workhouse was built for 820 inmates, divided by sex into two groups. It cost £64,000 to build and replaced the workhouse in Princes Road. Exterior of Cinema Museum lecture, Kennington, Lambeth

Exterior of Cinema Museum lecture, Kennington, Lambeth

The

water tower A water tower is an elevated structure supporting a water tank constructed at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system, distribution system for potable water, and to provide emergency storage for fire protection. Water towe ...

of the workhouse is Grade II listed. In 2011, it was converted into an unusual residence with a lift and observation gallery made from the large water tank on the eighth floor. The new interior was designed by

Sue Timney Sue Timney (born 1950, Benghazi, Emirate of Cyrenaica) is a British interior, product and textile designer. She has worked in Britain, USA, Europe and Japan and in 1980 co-founded Timney-Fowler, an interior product company. Timney's work is i ...

and the development was featured on the television show ''

Grand Designs ''Grand Designs'' is a British television series produced by Boundless and broadcast on Channel 4 which features unusual and often elaborate architectural homebuilding projects. The programme has been presented by Kevin McCloud since it first ...

''. The hospital was named Lambeth Hospital in 1922, which later gave its name to the psychiatric hospital in Clapham.

Notable residents

Charlie Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

was sent to the Lambeth Workhouse when he was seven years old, as a consequence of the financial difficulties of his family.

References

Workhouses in London Buildings and structures in the London Borough of Lambeth {{London-stub