Amersham Grove, London, SE14

This charming two-bedroom Victorian cottage is a 10-minute walk from the wonderful amenities of New Cross and Deptford. Recent interventions are sensitive, with fixtures nodding to the home’s 19th-century origins and thoughtfully restored period features. The broad spectrum of rich, playful colours used is complemented by the excellent quality of light across both storeys. The cottage has a private, decked garden at the rear and an outlook onto leafy Charlottenburg Park in front.

Setting the Scene

The attractive cottages that make up Amersham Grove were constructed for and by railway workers and their families following the opening of Deptford Station in 1836. Constructed to connect the town with London Bridge, over the past 180 years the station building has gone through many iterations, differing in architectural period and style. Although nothing remains of the original early Victorian structure, cottages such as this one, with their sunny yellow London stock-brick frontage, offer a glimpse at how the area would have looked during the 19th century.

The Grand Tour

Entry to the home is via a bold, burnt-orange front door set beneath an arched porch. The stock-brick façade is punctuated by three elegant windows with freshly painted white ledges and a band of white stucco at its base. Within, a neat hallway draws the eye towards the original timber staircase ahead. Natural light filters in through a wall of glass blocks which delineates the entrance from the reception rooms beyond, creating an ethereal pattern of light and shadow at certain times of the day.

The dining room, with a large window overlooking the private garden, has been painted in an enveloping, deep teal shade by Lick. In this room, an ornate original fireplace with intact glazed ceramic tiles forms a focal point, its mantlepiece lending the ideal perch for candles to illuminate long, lazy suppers with friends.

This space is open to the sitting room at the front of the plan, where there is a continuation of the same velvety blue hue. Awash with light from the elegant fenestration overlooking the greenery of Charlottenburg Square, this room revels in its fine period features: box coving, functioning original shutters and white-painted pine floorboards remain intact. A newer addition, built-in shelving by the window offers display space for a personal library.

To the rear of the ground floor lies a wonderfully luminous contemporary kitchen. Extended by previous owners and with capacious storage and counter space, the airy kitchen is brightened by two Velux skylights and a large glazed door that opens out onto the decked garden. Thoughtful design has rendered a sense of free-flowing indoor/outdoor living for the warmer months, allowing the garden to be an integral part of the home. The kitchen is warmed from below by underfloor heating.

At the front of the first floor is the main bedroom, which sits across almost the entirety of the home’s footprint. Two large windows overlooking the park and silver birches beyond, allow dappled light to dance across the buttery-white walls. Smart, fitted wardrobes have been installed on either side of the original fireplace, and the generous proportions and ceiling height are immediately apparent.

The second double bedroom has a peaceful and sheltered outlook over the garden. In this room, the skirting board and practical built-in shelving have been painted a fanciful peachy pink – a whimsical choice that uplifts the atmosphere of the space.

Recently and comprehensively renovated, the bathroom is a joyous expression of texture and colour. An intelligent use of materials confers with the home’s Victorian origins. Electric blue tongue-and-groove panelling offsets the fine white porcelain sink and WC fixtures from Burlington. Fabulous scalloped tiles line the walk-in shower, while reeded glass doors provide privacy.

The Great Outdoors

Great privacy is derived from the mature trees at the rear end of the garden, set behind a fence. Decked for ease, the outdoor space has been rendered a practical extension of the house itself and, accessed from the kitchen, invites the perfect opportunity for al fresco dining and entertaining. There is scope to further develop the space into a fabulous and manageable city garden.

Out and About

Amersham Grove sits between two vibrant London neighbourhoods, Deptford and New Cross with their countless popular pubs, restaurants and markets. Local favourites include the delectable Italian delights of Marcella and Aprina Bakery, purveyors of good coffee and excellent vegan-friendly pastries. The hubs of Greenwich, St Johns, Nunhead are all close by and have rich and varied histories.

Accessible green spaces abound. Fordham Park, Margaret McMillan Park, Folkstone Gardens are all close by. A little further afield are Nunhead Cemetery, Peckham Rye and the wonderous Hilly Fields. The Green Chain Walk, which extends across south-east London is easily reached and invites an exploration of the wider city quadrant.

There is a renowned farmers’ market every Saturday at Brockley Market, offering a wide range of organic produce, alongside food trucks and wine merchants. Deptford Market Yard, a collection of independent shops and restaurants set within and around Deptford’s refurbished railway arches, is nearby. Telegraph Hill is within walking distance and also has a weekly farmers’ market as well as access to two parks. Goldsmiths University and its free public art gallery, the Goldsmiths Centre for Contemporary Art, are also close by.

The house is a four-minute walk from New Cross Station, which runs services to London Bridge in five minutes, as well as frequent Overground services with connections to Peckham, Shoreditch and Highbury & Islington. Deptford Station is a nine-minute walk and runs regular Thameslink services to Farringdon, St Pancras and many others.

Council Tax Band: C