Floor Sanding South London

Although south of the river appears superficially to be an endless parade of terraces, shops, trainlines and bus routes, there are sanctuaries of pre-Victorian splendour to satisfy the appetite for connections to the buildings of the past.

Start at Borough High Street with the George Inn – the only remaining galleried coaching inn in London. Rebuilt in 1676 after a fire, enjoying a drink beneath its wooden beams takes one back to Dickensian times – and even conjurs up the image of Chaucer’s pilgrims who departed on their famous pilgrimage nearby.

Brixton is enjoying a vibrant 21st century resurgence but the windmill of 1816 has been recently restored. It provides a reminder of Lambeth’s rural past – and of the many such mills which once ground the local corn.

Croydon has the identity of a town in its own right – with the largest parish church in the former (and larger) county of Surrey. The tower is the only part of the fabric that survived a mid 19th century fire but the site is the resting place of seven Archbishops of Canterbury.

Not surprisingly, as Croydon Palace originated in the 13th century as a manor of the Archbishops. Among several notable features is the magnificent wooden roof in its Great Hall.

Perhaps the most welcome survivor is Whitgift’s Hospital at the top of the High Street. Peering into its quadrangle and seeing the chapel and the redbrick two storey dwellings is a slightly surreal experience. Fast forward four hundred years with the turn of a head.