Benn's Island, previously named Church Eyot, Kember's Eyot and sometimes referred to as Benn's Ait, is a private

ait An ait (, like ''eight'') or eyot () is a small island. It is especially used to refer to river islands found on the River Thames and its tributaries in England. Aits are typically formed by the deposit of sediment in the water, which accumu ...

(island) on the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

south-west of London. It is among a string of narrow islands above

Molesey Lock Molesey Lock is a lock (water transport), lock on the River Thames in England at East Molesey, Surrey on the bank (geography), right bank. The lock was built by the City of London Corporation in 1815 and was rebuilt by the Thames Conservancy i ...

and due to its clubhouse and size – the second-smallest named island on the Thames – it has

deep foundation A pile or piling is a vertical structural element of a deep foundation, driven or drilled deep into the ground at the building site. A deep foundation is a type of foundation (architecture), foundation that transfers building loads to the e ...

pilings to raise the building more than 1 m above the water line.

Location and access

Benn's Island, the second-smallest public map-named island on the Thames, is close to the

left Left may refer to: Music * ''Left'' (Hope of the States album), 2006 * ''Left'' (Monkey House album), 2016 * ''Left'' (Helmet album), 2023 * "Left", a song by Nickelback from the album ''Curb'', 1996 Direction * Left (direction), the relativ ...

bank of the

Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia * Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria ** Hampton railway station, Melbour ...

, in the

London Borough of Richmond upon Thames The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames () in south-west Greater London, London, England, forms part of Outer London and is the only London boroughs, London borough on both sides of the River Thames. It was created in 1965 when three smaller ...

in England, on the reach above

, the second non-tidal reach of the river. The water between the island and the near bank is shallow and navigable with care to small vessels. The clubhouse is linked to Benn's Alley, a narrow

slipway A slipway, also known as boat ramp or launch or boat deployer, is a ramp on the shore by which ships or boats can be moved to and from the water. They are used for building and repairing ships and boats, and for launching and retrieving smal ...

on the northern bank by a manually operated

pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, by wheelchair or with other mobility aids. Streets and roads often have a designated footpath for pedestrian traffic, called the '' sidewalk'' in North American English, the ''pavement'' in British En ...

chain ferry A cable ferry (including the types chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...

at the downstream end. Hampton Ferry connecting to

Molesey Molesey is a suburban district comprising two large villages, East Molesey and West Molesey, in the Borough of Elmbridge, Surrey, England. Molesey is within the Greater London Built-up Area, and is situated on the south bank of the River Thames ...

operates to the east of the island using a separate set of steps or slipway and directly facing to St Mary's Church.

Use

In the 19th century the island was used by the then Thames Valley Sailing Club, transforming to the Middle Thames Yacht and motorboat club on

Sunbury Lock Ait Sunbury Lock Ait is the ait (island) in the River Thames in England adjacent to Sunbury Lock between Walton-on-Thames, and Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey. It is unpopulated, but accessible by a footbridge over the lock cut from a wide section of the ...

, whose then headquarters were a houseboat moored at Benn's Island and which was destroyed by fire in 1900. Since 1945 it has been leased by Hampton Sailing Club which also conducts some paddleboarding and shares the reach with two school watersports clubs and

Molesey Boat Club Molesey Boat Club is a Rowing (sport), rowing club between Molesey Lock and Sunbury Lock on the River Thames in England. The club was founded in 1866 where its boathouse stands with hardstanding next to the Thames Path National Trail, Thames P ...

. In 1962 the clubhouse was built on the piles at Benn's Island. Extensive building works and piling make on casual observance the island seem wholly artificial, disguising its natural small core with substantial extensions.

Notes and references

;Notes ;References {{Coord, 51, 24, 44, N, 0, 21, 48, W, type:isle_region:GB-RIC_scale:5000, display=title Geography of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Islands of the River Thames Private islands of the United Kingdom

Location and access

Use

See also

Notes and references