Four funders have backed a restoration of the Grade II South Norwood hall, running to 2029. The public consultation survey closes at the end of October.

South Norwood’s Stanley Halls has secured money from four funders to design a restoration of the whole building, and the public survey that shapes it closes at the end of October. The work is meant to finish in 2029, the 200th anniversary of the man who paid for the place.

Stanley Arts, the charity that runs the Grade II listed halls, announced the awards on 11 September. The backers are the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Architectural Heritage Fund and the Pilgrim Trust.

What the money buys, and what it does not

This is development funding, not building funding. It pays for plans, surveys and fundraising rather than scaffolding.

The charity is clear about the sequence: the awards “now allow Stanley Arts to develop plans and fundraise for a multi-million pound project to conserve, renovate and reimagine our historic home”. The delivery stage is expected to “take flight in the new year”.

Neither Stanley Arts nor the Heritage Fund has published the amounts. The award does not appear in the Heritage Fund’s published schedules of England, London and South delegated decisions for June, July or August 2026, which cover grants of £10,000 to £250,000 (Heritage Fund funding decisions). We will add the figures here when either funder publishes them.

The first two phases of the capital programme were completed in 2025, funded by the Mayor of London, the Heritage Fund, Historic England and the Architectural Heritage Fund.

The plans

The architect is AOC, the practice behind the Young V&A in Bethnal Green and the current work on the National Archives at Kew. Stanley Arts lists six things at the heart of the scheme:

  • a new public entrance with a double-height welcome space and a café bar
  • a new gate to open up the Yard for outdoor events
  • fully step-free front of house access
  • a larger overall venue capacity
  • a heritage-sensitive services upgrade, aiming at operational net zero by 2030
  • a connection between the north and south wings of the building
Key dates for Stanley Halls: first stone laid May 1902, phases one and two of the capital programme completed 2025, four funders back the development stage September 2026, public consultation survey closes end of October 2026, delivery stage begins 2027, project completes 2029 for William Stanley's 200th birthday
Graphic by Croydon Today
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How to have a say, and by when

Public consultation is the live part. Stanley Arts is running an online survey and says everyone who completes it before the end of October goes into a draw for two tickets to a show of their choosing (consultation survey).

Alongside it, the charity runs free guided tours of the building on the last Wednesday of each month (historic tour listings). The next one falls on 30 September. More consultations, workshops and online forums are promised for the rest of 2026.

Why 2029

The first stone of Stanley Halls was laid in May 1902, and the building has been a hub of south London’s cultural life since. Stanley Arts says it still works to its founder William Stanley’s motto for the place, that it should be a space of “Justice, Liberty and Science”.

The target date is not arbitrary. 2029 is William Stanley’s 200th birthday, and the charity has timed the project to finish for it.

A new chair, appointed for the building work

On 23 September the charity announced a new board, and said explicitly that the appointments were made with the capital project in mind (Growth and Leadership at Stanley Arts).

Sonia Solicari takes over as chair. She has been director of the Museum of the Home since 2017, where the charity says she oversaw a redevelopment that doubled the institution’s public space after its reinvention from the Geffrye Museum. She was previously head of the Guildhall Art Gallery and London’s Roman Amphitheatre, and a curator at the V&A. James Cross becomes treasurer, Lundi Nyoni moves up to deputy chair and secretary, and Laura Gabe joins as a trustee.

Chief executive and artistic director Louisa Bartlett-Pestell said Solicari “has demonstrated an incredible ability to drive large-scale capital transformation while keeping community and heritage at the core of her vision”, and thanked Almiro Andrade for three years of “tireless support and leadership”.

What it means for you

If you use Stanley Arts, the building stays open through the development stage. Nothing closes this year.

If you want the restoration to include something specific, whether that is step-free access to a particular space, more room for community bookings or keeping a feature you value, the survey before the end of October is the moment it is cheapest to say so. Designs harden once the delivery stage starts in the new year.

If you just want to see the building properly, the free tour on the last Wednesday of the month is the straightforward way in. More things to do locally are in our what’s on in Croydon guide.

Sources