Our Communications and Media Manager looks after the press and marketing for the Society. Marie works alongside our Director and Conservation Advisers to protect Victorian and Edwardian buildings and structures in England and Wales. She runs the Top Ten Endangered Buildings campaign each year from nomination stage through to placing stories in the media. Marie also sits on the LISSCA Committee and works promoting our campaigns. She also looks after the monthly newsletter.
LISSCA says “Do not pass go, do not collect £1.5 Billion: Don’t let Network Rail and the City play Monopoly with Liverpool Street Station”
Time to pause – and question Network Rail’s plans. The Liverpool Street Station Campaign (LISSCA), headed by Griff Rhys Jones, has carefully considered the latest plans for Liverpool Street Station....
The Victorian Society celebrates the listing of the Market Hotel on Station Street Birmingham
The Society is absolutely delighted that the Secretary of State and Historic England have agreed to back our Birmingham Conservation Adviser’s call for the listing of the former Market Hotel...
First major book on the ‘rogue’ architects of Victorian England
The Rogue Goths – R.L. Roumieu, Joseph Peacock and Bassett Keeling By Edmund Harris Publication date: 28th November 2024 Author Edmund Harris’s book is the latest in the Victorian Society’s...
The Victorian Society secures listing for Church of All Saints, Chigwell Row, Essex
(Grade II, J. P. Seddon, 1867) All Saints is a bold and impressive church from the height of the Victorian Gothic Revival. Opened in 1867 on the edge of Hainault...
The Victorian Society secures listing for Church of St Mary in Crossway Green
(Grade II, Thomas Vale, 1882) The Mission Church of St. Mary, Crossway Green, was presented to the parish by Henry Philpott, the Bishop of Worcester, who opened it in 1882....
Could you be the Fundraising Manager for the Victorian Society?
Fundraising Manager FTE Salary band £35-37.5k pro rata Why not work for the only charity dedicated to fighting to protect our Victorian and Edwardian heritage? The Victorian Society is looking...
We’re hiring a Membership Manager
Membership Manager FTE Salary band £35k–£37.5k pro rata Why not work for the only charity dedicated to fighting to protect and celebrate our Victorian and Edwardian heritage? The Victorian...
Could you be a Conservation Adviser at the Victorian Society?
Conservation Adviser Full time, based in London Salary £26,000-£30,000 The Victorian Society is the national charity campaigning for the Victorian and Edwardian built environment. This is one of the most...
The Victorian Society secures listing for church in Beck Row in Suffolk
St John, Beck Row, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk (Grade II, J. D. Wyatt, 1876) An Anglican church in the Mildenhall Parish, St John and its settlement were a much quieter...
Birmingham Council’s lack of enforcement action threatens heritage in the city
Threat to heritage may multiply as more councils stave off bankruptcy The Victorian Society and its regional West Midlands and Birmingham Group are concerned at the current situation in relation...
Nominations for the Victorian Society’s Top 10 Endangered Buildings list 2025 are now open!
The Victorian Society is asking the public to nominate threatened Victorian and Edwardian buildings for their list of Top 10 Endangered Buildings to be announced in 2025. The Society’s Top...
James Grierson appointed Chair of the Victorian Society
The Victorian Society is delighted to announce the appointment of James Grierson as Chair of the Society in succession to Professor Hilary Grainger OBE. James is a Chartered Surveyor with...
The National Lottery Heritage Fund supports a sustainable future for the Society
The Society is hugely grateful for a generous award of funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, which will help prepare the charity for a sustainable future, so that in...
Lord Mayor of Bradford to welcome Victorian Society to the city for its AGM and weekend of architectural exploration
Friday 4 October to Sunday 6 October 2024 AGM from 2.45pm at Midland Hotel, Bradford BD1 4HU The Victorian Society, the national charity that campaigns for Victorian and Edwardian buildings...
The Victorian Society opposes the needless demolition of Aire Place Mills as permitted development rights continue
An application has been submitted to Leeds City Council to determine if prior approval is required for the complete demolition of Aire Place Mills in Leeds under Permitted Development Rights....
Come and visit our listed HQ as part of Open House Festival 2024
We are opening our listed offices as part of this year’s Open House Festival. We are based in Bedford Park, Chiswick. The building is Grade II, built in 1880 and...
Restoration of Vicars’ Close needs to retain the contributions of major Gothic Revival architects
The Vicars’ Close in Wells is one of the most famous residential streets in the UK and is arguably the best preserved group of medieval houses in Europe. Victorian architects...
Society succeeds in upgrading listing for Deptford Town Hall to Grade II*
We are delighted that the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, and Historic England, has accepted our application to upgrade the former Deptford Town Hall’s listing to...
Kate Martyn becomes Manchester Regional Group Chair
The Victorian Society is delighted to welcome Kate Martyn to the role of Chair of our Manchester Regional Group. Kate moved to Manchester in 2016 to set up Donald Insall’s...
Rowena Beighton-Dykes becomes Liverpool Group Chair
The Victorian Society is delighted to welcome Rowena Beighton-Dykes to the role of Chair of our Liverpool Regional Group. Having moved to the Wirral in 2019 Rowena became involved with...
The Victorian Society call on Birmingham City Council to immediately intervene to protect fine Victorian conservatory
The Society is concerned that Birmingham City Council’s current financial situation is preventing it from intervening to prevent the continuing deterioration of listed heritage in the city. The Society’s Birmingham...
The Victorian Society and Toast Design complete a brand refresh and create a new website for the charity
The Victorian Society has worked with Banbury-based integrated agency Toast Design to deliver both a new identity and a bespoke website. With a website estimated to be 20 years old...
Griff Rhys Jones Launches 2024 Top Ten Endangered Buildings List
The Top Ten Endangered Victorian and Edwardian Buildings list 2024 has been revealed by the Victorian Society’s President The buildings in the Top Ten are nationally important Grade II* and...
Thousands of objections lead to Sellar making changes to their plans for Liverpool Street Station
The Victorian Society has strongly opposed aspects of the scheme, in particular the substantial demolition of parts of the station and the construction of a tall building supported through and...
James Hughes appointed new Director of the Victorian Society
The Victorian Society is very pleased to announce James Hughes as its new Director. Professor Hilary Grainger, Chair of the Society said: ‘The Board of Trustees of the Victorian Society...
Our West Yorkshire Group celebrates it 50th anniversary
On the 24th April 1974 our founder members in West Yorkshire created a regional group of the Victorian Society to champion and protect their local endangered Victorian and Edwardian heritage....
Trelaske Lodge Lewannick in Cornwall now listed
This unspoilt former lodge is now a Grade II-listed building. Photo Copyright: James Emmans and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence CC BY-SA 2.0 DEE We wrote to...
The Victorian Society secures a notably rare success at consistory court
The Society recently received the Judgment from the Chancellor of the Diocese of Winchester, who has refused permission for a substantial extension and sweeping scheme of reordering to the church...
Happy Birthday, George Edmund Street! The Victorian Society celebrates the bicentenary year of architect G.E. Street
This year is the bicentenary of the birth of George Edmund Street (1824 – 1881), the architect of the Royal Courts of Justice. From March to November, the Victorian Society, in association with St James...
The Victorian Society urges Preston Council not to let flats plan for former Park Hotel extension ruin historic views
The Victorian Society has objected to plans to extend the elegant former Park Hotel in Preston with a huge L-shaped, wrap around, extension which is 4-5 stories higher than the...
The Victorian Society encourages people to object to plan to demolish agricultural outbuildings at George Eliot’s childhood farm home
The Victorian Society are calling on the public to oppose the partial demolition of George Eliot’s farmstead. Agricultural buildings associated with the childhood home of the 19th-century writer would be...
The Victorian Society needs a new director
The Victorian Society is a small society which packs a big punch. Established in 1958, it is one of six National Amenity Societies that are statutory consultees on alterations to...
The Victorian Society secures listing for church in Ruswarp North Yorkshire
St Bartholomew, Ruswarp, North Yorkshire, Grade II, C N Armfield, 1869 St Bartholomew’s soaring tower and spire, together with its apsidal chancel, are an impressive sight high above Ruswarp’s village...
Government launches consultation to stop the demolition of unlisted historic buildings under permitted development rights
The consultation we were promised at the height of our campaigning in 2023 to stop the demolition of unlisted historic buildings under permitted development rights is underway. This is a...
The Victorian Society and the London Gasketeers welcome break through in extending protection for Westminster gas lights
Arts and Heritage Minister Lord Parkinson’s announcement on 12th February, of Listing Protection for four Gas Lamps in Covent Garden, heralds the possible protection of more of the historic lights....
The Victorian Society Director Joe O’Donnell
After almost 4 years with the The Victorian Society, Joe O’Donnell has moved on from his role as Director to focus on project managing the restoration of his new home....
The Victorian Society encourages people to have their say about plans to develop Worcester’s Shrub Hill Quarter
When the The Victorian Society learned that Worcester Council was planning for an important area, including a Victorian railway hub from the 1850s, to be developed, including the demolition of...
Chichester District Council approves destruction of building by leading gothic revival architect to improve conservation area
The Victorian Society is extremely disappointed that, despite its strong objection, Chichester District Council has approved the demolition of a house designed by a significant Victorian architect in a conservation...
Sir David Cannadine presents 2020 Conservation Award plaque to Wedge Group Galvanizing Ltd
Vice President Sir David Cannadine and the The Victorian Society’s Birmingham and West Midland’s group presented the plaque to their 2020 Conservation Award winner on the 19th January 2024. The...
Online talk series explores the British Empire’s architectural legacy from Glasgow to Australia (24 January – 13 March 2024)
The sun has long-since set on the British Empire, but its architecture still casts a long shadow. The Victorian Society’s 2024 Online Winter Talk series ‘Victorian and Edwardian Architecture in...
First major book on flamboyant Edwardian architect Edwin Rickards published
Edwin Rickards by Timothy Brittain-Catlin is the latest in the The Victorian Society’s monograph series on Victorian and Edwardian architects. This is the first book devoted to the life and work of the...
Watch the Public Meeting with Griff Rhys Jones to Save Liverpool Street Station
Griff Rhys Jones OBE, the President of LISSCA and the The Victorian Society, is urging the public to fight the scheme that developer Sellar and Network Rail have proposed for...
Decision on Bishopsgate Bathhouse proves City of London needs to step up its heritage protection
Despite 366 objections the City of London has given permission to cantilever over a gem-like, much loved, Grade II-listed building. 366 people objected to the construction of a 23-storey tower...
Griff Rhys Jones to host Save Liverpool Street Station Public Meeting 21 November 2023
The President of the The Victorian Society and the LISSCA Campaign to Save Liverpool Street Station will be hosting a free public meeting at Bishopsgate Institute on Tuesday 21st November...
Griff Rhys Jones calls for public donations to fight Network Rail and Sellar’s planning application which will mean ‘no listed building is safe’
The controversial planning application for the partial demolition of listed Liverpool Street Station to build a tower through and over the Grade II* former Great Eastern Hotel has now been...
How do I object to the plans to partially demolish Liverpool Street Station?
We have prepared this guide to help anyone who wishes to write an objection to the plans to partially demolish Liverpool Street Station. How do I object to the plans...
The Victorian Society’s online talk series explores what can be learnt from 19th Century railways and their legacy today
Railway Architecture and Society in the Victorian Age – The Victorian Society’s Online Autumn Talk Series 2023 25 October – 6 December 2023 The railways are more in the news...
The Society successfully lists elements of Worcester’s railway boom
Opened in 1852, Shrub Hill Station in Worcester served as a joint station for the Midland and Great Western Railways, quickly becoming the focal point for a bustling railway district...
The Victorian Society votes to promote sustainable repair and reuse of historic buildings
The Right Worshipful Mayor of Bath Councillor Dine Romero welcomed The Victorian Society Chair Professor Hilary Grainger, Director Joe O’Donnell and The Victorian Society members to Bath at Grade II-listed...
The Victorian Society identify Norfolk lodge by architect Anthony Salvin and secure its listing
The Lodge, Stoke Holy Cross, Norfolk now listed at Grade II Having been alerted by Chris Bennett, Senior Heritage and Design Officer at South Norfolk and Broadland Council, our Conservation...
Nominations for The Victorian Society’s Top 10 Endangered Buildings list 2024 are now open!
The Victorian Society is asking the public to nominate threatened Victorian and Edwardian buildings for their list of Top 10 Endangered Buildings to be announced in 2024. The Society’s Top...
The Victorian Society urges Government to ensure Reading Gaol’s sale allows public access to important part of the UK’s queer history
“Something was dead in each of us, and what was dead was hope.” Oscar Wilde The Ballad of Reading Gaol The Save Reading Gaol campaign has tweeted that a sale...
Government commits to consult on making it harder to demolish locally important buildings after the loss of ‘Crooked House’
The Government has committed to consulting on requiring planning permission to demolish unlisted buildings. Currently most unlisted buildings outside a conservation area can be demolished without planning permission. The move...
Hornblotton House in Somerset is successfully listed
We are absolutely delighted that Hornblotton House in Somerset has been listed at Grade II. This is one of two unlisted rectories that we drew attention to in February 2023...
Sir John Betjeman’s birthday sees launch of major fundraising appeal to Save Liverpool Street Station
Monday 28th August 2023 Members of the campaign to Save Liverpool Street Station are using The Betjeman Society’s birthday celebration for its hero Sir John Betjeman, on 28 August, to...
Would you like to organise events for the The Victorian Society?
Do you love visiting Victorian and Edwardian heritage or hearing talks about it? Would you like to organise visits to places the public don’t ordinarily get to see? If so,...
Network Rail urged not to demolish rare surviving Victorian ticket office in Northumberland
At a time when the RMT union and rail users are campaigning to retain ticket offices across the UK, Northumberland County Council has approved plans to demolish a historic survivor...
The Victorian Society secures listing for Norman Evill house in Stanwix Carlisle
Grade II, Norman Evill, 1902 Barn Close is an outstanding Arts and Crafts house, designed by Norman Evill in close collaboration with its original occupiers Edwin and Maud Scott-Nicholson. Edwin...
The Victorian Society secures listing for the oldest surviving cricket pavilion in the country located at a first-class cricket ground
Liverpool Cricket Club’s main pavilion has been listed at Grade II by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, following advice from Historic England. The listing recognises the pavilion’s special...
City of London must refuse permission for tower over the top of listed Victorian Turkish Baths to avoid being branded failing on heritage protection
The Victorian Society is urging the City of London to reject plans to cantilever a tower over a listed Victorian Turkish bath house – the exterior of which is covered...
Latest edition of The Victorian is out now – July 2023
The July 2023 edition of The Victorian is devoted to interior decoration. Arriving on our members’ doormats is the latest copy of The Victorian. The July 2023 edition is devoted...
Fire at Ushaw involving Grade II* St Aloysius Chapel and the Ushaw Junior House
Statement from Joe O’Donnell, Director, The Victorian Society following the fire at Ushaw near Durham. County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service received reports of a fire at the...
The Victorian Society secures listing for eye-catching former bank in Gateshead
A second success this summer in the north of England for the listings team is the former Lloyds Bank at 15 West Street, Gateshead. This monumental building in the Edwardian...
Griff Rhys Jones launches 2023 Top Ten Endangered Buildings list
The Top Ten Endangered Victorian and Edwardian Buildings list 2023 has been revealed by the The Victorian Society’s President. The full list is here. All the buildings in the Top...
Revealed: nation’s Top Ten most endangered buildings 2012
A shocking legacy of neglect and mistreatment The top ten include Ipswich’s blighted and vandalised former County Hall and an atmospheric Essex church abandoned twenty years ago and left to...
Liverpool Street Station listing revisions should spell end for demolition plans
Liverpool Street Station and the Great former Eastern Hotel now have revised listings that include most of the 90s redevelopment The Victorian Society is delighted that Liverpool Street Station’s list...
Defeat for Bath’s heritage as Abbey pew removal is permitted
The Chancellor of the Diocese of Bath and Wells has granted permission for Bath Abbey to permanently remove its fine nave pews, despite opposition from The Victorian Society. This follows...
The Victorian Society’s 2019 Top 10 Endangered Buildings
An overview of 2019’s Top 10 Most Endangered Buildings National architecture charity the The Victorian Society has released their annual Top 10 Most Endangered Buildings List, which highlights the most...
News
Complete list of news items LISSCA sends letter to the Editor of The Times 10 May 2023 Could you be our next Chair of the Board of Trustees? 05...
Griff Rhys Jones and heritage campaigners to ask Michael Gove to decide Liverpool Street Station’s future
The campaign to Save Liverpool Street Station (LISSCA) will ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove, to ‘call in’ plans to partially demolish Liverpool...
LISSCA sends letter to the Editor of The Times
The Victorian Society and LISSCA campaign President Griff Rhys Jones wrote a letter to the editor of The Times for publication on the newspaper’s letter page. It appeared in print...
Could you be our next Chair of the Board of Trustees?
This is an exceptional opportunity for a talented individual who is enthusiastic about Victorian and Edwardian architecture. The Victorian Society has an enviable reputation for the depth of its knowledge...
The Victorian Society’s amendments removing permitted development rights for demolition debated in the House of Lords
Baroness Andrews, Lord Carrington of Fulham and Lord Shipley championed our amendments to the Levelling-Up and Regeneration Bill which would remove Permitted Development Rights for demolition. The amendments, detailed below,...
Book tickets for our AGM weekend and discover Bath’s Victorian heritage this October
This October (6th to 8th) join us in Bath for our AGM weekend and the opportunity to discover the city’s Victorian heritage. Friday has an optional morning visit to the...
The Victorian Society encourages people to object to insensitive 10 storey tower at Gloucester’s historic docks
The Victorian Society has objected to plans to redevelop the Grade II listed former Downings Malthouse. The plans would heavily alter what survives of the listed buildings, with new residential...
The Victorian Society encourages people to object to insensitive 10 storey tower at Gloucester’s historic docks
The Victorian Society has objected to plans to redevelop the Grade II listed former Downings Malthouse. The plans would heavily alter what survives of the listed buildings, with new residential...
City of London’s protection of heritage and the environment questioned as tower overshadowing Leadenhall Market approved
The Victorian Society objected to plans for a 32-storey tower in Leadenhall Market Conservation Area which will loom over one of the city’s architectural jewels – the 1881 Grade II*...
Rent office space at our Grade II listed headquarters in Chiswick, London
Do you know a charity or small business that could rent an office space at our Grade II listed headquarters at 1 Priory Gardens, Chiswick, London? The office space for...
The Victorian Society objects to insensitive redevelopment of historic brewery maltings in Dorchester
The Victorian Society is urging the public to object to insensitive plans to re-develop the 1879 Grade II Maltings building in the Dorchester conservation area to create 46 flats. The...
The Victorian Society’s climate emergency push to require planning permission for demolition
Baroness Andrews has put forward the The Victorian Society’s amendment to the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill to require planning permission for demolishing buildings. Shockingly most buildings can currently be demolished...
The latest Victorian magazine is now available to our members
The March edition of the Society’s magazine is published and is devoted to the charity’s newly established Young Victorians group with the main features written by authors aged under 30....
The Victorian Society’s climate emergency push to require planning permission for demolition
Baroness Andrews has put forward the The Victorian Society’s amendment to the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill to require planning permission for demolishing buildings. Shockingly most buildings can currently be demolished...
Annual Appeal 2023: Save Liverpool Street Station!
As many of you will know by now, Liverpool Street Station and the grade II* former Great Eastern Hotel, face a grave threat. Network Rail and Sellar, the property developer...
The Victorian Society seeks listing for historic Somerset rectory designed by famous architects to prevent its demolition
The Victorian Society is urging the public to object to plans to partially demolish a Victorian rectory in Shepton Mallet, Somerset designed by a famous architect F. C. Penrose who was President...
The Victorian Society seeks listing for historic Somerset rectory designed by famous architects to prevent its demolition
The Victorian Society is urging the public to object to plans to partially demolish a Victorian rectory in Shepton Mallet, Somerset designed by a famous architect F. C. Penrose who...
The Victorian Society seeks listing for historic West Sussex rectory designed by a famous architect to prevent demolition
The Victorian Society is urging the public to object to plans to demolish an Edwardian rectory designed by a famous architect in the seaside village of Apuldram, West Sussex. The...
Little Barford Manor House in Bedfordshire successfully listed
The Victorian Society Conservation adviser wrote in support of this listing We are delighted that Little Barford Manor House in Bedfordshire has been listed. Our conservation adviser Connor McNeill wrote...
Tettenhall Court one of the finest Arts and Crafts houses in Wolverhampton successfully listed
Tettenhall Court is one of the finest Arts and Crafts houses in Wolverhampton. The house was completed in 1914 to designs by local architect William Weller. The Victorian Society’s West...
Birmingham City University Wins 2022 West Midlands Conservation Award
The Birmingham & West Midlands Group of the The Victorian Society has announced its eighth annual conservation award which goes to Birmingham City University, in recognition of the City University’s...
The Victorian Society objects to plans to demolish historic carriage showrooms in Manchester
The Victorian Society is urging the public to object to plans to demolish Reedham House, a grade II listed part of a historic carriage works in Garden Lane, Manchester and...
Relaunched Liverpool Street Station Campaign names Griff Rhys Jones as President and asks public to sign petition
The campaign’s slogan: SEE IT, SAY IT, SAVE IT! All aboard!! Sign the petition here! The public can donate to the Society’s Liverpool Street Station fighting fund here. The Victorian...
The Pevsner Architectural Guides in the 21st Century
Join The Victorian Society for its new series of seven online talks The Pevsner Architectural Guides in the 21st Century given by the highly accomplished and authoritative Pevsner authors themselves...
The Pevsner Architectural Guides in the 21st Century
Join The Victorian Society for its new series of seven online talks The Pevsner Architectural Guides in the 21st Century given by the highly accomplished and authoritative Pevsner authors themselves...
Liverpool Street Station Development Consultation Begins in London
The Liverpool Street Station development consultation has begun in London. There is a two day exhibition organised by Network Rail, developer Sellar and MTR, an operator of rail transport services,...
The Victorian Society welcomes the charity’s new Media and Communications Manager
The Victorian Society is delighted to welcome Marie Clements as Communications and Media Manager. The Victorian Society is delighted to welcome Marie Clements as Communications and Media Manager. Marie has...
Don’t miss your chance to object to demolition plans at Liverpool Street Station!
The Victorian Society is urging the public to respond to a public consultation to object to proposals to partially demolish Liverpool Street Station. The Victorian Society also plans to reform...
The Victorian Society urges Westminster Council not to remove historic gaslights
The Victorian Society has responded to a consultation on the proposed removal of gaslights in Westminster The Victorian Society has written to Westminster Council expressing its concerns with the plans...
The Victorian Society AGM in Nottingham
Date: Fri 30 September-Sun 2 October 2022 Please join us on Fri 30 September – Sun 2 October 2022 for our first in person annual general meeting (AGM) weekend since...
Political chaos must not delay plans to restore the Palace of Westminster
The Victorian Society has written to over 600 MPs and 60 Lords urging them to use debates this week on 12/13 July to push for a firm timeline for the...
Ipswich Museum under threat from historically insensitive redevelopment
Insensitive redevelopment of Ipswich Museum threatens rare survival of Victorian curation The Grade II listed Ipswich Museum, designed by Horace Cheston in 1880 for Ipswich Corporation, has been awarded funding...