About Us

Our members’ generosity enables us to fight for the Victorian and Edwardian buildings people value.

Every day, we work to protect Victorian and Edwardian buildings from demolition and destruction.

We are the only charity dedicated to fighting for our Victorian and Edwardian heritage and are a statutory consultee in the planning system. We help tackle the climate emergency by campaigning for the sensitive reuse of historic buildings to generate much lower carbon emissions than demolition and rebuild. Join us today and safeguard our unique cultural heritage for future generations.

Our Conservation Advisers, guided by experts on our Southern Buildings Committee and Northern Buildings Committee, help local planning authorities and churches to avoid needless harm to Victorian or Edwardian buildings.

The reuse of our wonderful historic buildings, rather than wasteful demolition and rebuild, is key to a sustainable future.

Our input has saved landmark buildings ranging from St Pancras in London to the Albert Dock in Liverpool.

The Society’s formal objects are to:

  1. awaken public interest in and appreciation of the best of Victorian and Edwardian arts, architecture, crafts and design;
  2. encourage the study of these and related social history and advise owners and public authorities on the preservation and repair of Victorian and Edwardian buildings and the uses to which they can, if necessary, be adapted;
  3. save from needless destruction or disfigurement Victorian and Edwardian buildings or groups of buildings of special architectural merit including by promoting the inherent sustainability of the repair and reuse of historic buildings.

We run numerous events and visits, developed by our events committee, and publish books, journals and a membership magazine to entertain and educate about our subject.

Photo: The Clock Tower of St Pancras Station, London. by alexdavidwriter is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

The Victorian Society is an IHBC-recognised CPD provider.

We’ve been fighting to protect historic buildings since John Betjeman and Nikolaus Pevsner among others founded The Victorian Society in February 1958. Their aim was to preserve Victorian and Edwardian architecture and encourage research into the art and history of the period. Read more about our history here.

The Victorian Society is a registered charity in England and Wales. Charity number 1081435.