Taymount Grange XII
Taymount Rise, London SE23
Architect: G. Bertram Carter
Request viewingRegister for similar homes“Crittall windows draw in a wealth of light and frame the surrounding greenery”
Found within Forest Hill’s inimitable Taymount Grange, this studio apartment has a pared-back finish that allows the building’s 1930s bones to sit centre stage. Immaculate communal gardens and allotments surround the entire estate, with the best of Forest Hill – including great coffee spots and the enchanting Horniman Museum and Gardens – just a short walk away.
The Building
Taymount Grange was designed by George Bertram Carter and built between 1935 and 1936; inside, its lifts and richly carpeted stairwells hint at the glamour of the building’s early life, when facilities available to occupants included a dining room and lounge. It has a caretaker, an intercom system for access, and plenty of bike storage. Its communal areas are in great condition and retain many of its original features. Expansive lawns surround the building and are home to well-planted allotments, which residents have private access to. For more information on Taymount Grange, please see the History section below.
The Tour
The apartment lies on the lower ground floor, yet remains exceptionally bright care of the carefully sloped topography of the communal gardens beyond; Crittall windows look out directly onto a section of this gently inclining greenery. It occupies a compact plan, with a bedroom/living room, kitchen and bathroom, connected by a central hallway with a built-in wardrobe for storage.
The living/bedroom occupies the right-hand side of the plan, with the bed neatly concealed behind a white curtain. There is high-level storage above and a run of built-in bookshelves by the doorway. Crittall windows look out to a path and the emerging greenery of the communal gardens beyond.
In the middle of the plan is the kitchen, which also functions as a dining area. It also serves a third purpose, with the built-in banquette seating and fold-down dining table at the rear wall coming together to create a single bed when required. The kitchen itself has ample storage in white cabinetry, solid oak worktops and a generous fridge/freezer. Tongue-and-groove panelling adds a traditional touch, and a large window has the same views towards the gardens.
Adjacent is a good-sized bathroom, home to a large bath and the original Crittall windows, here frosted for privacy.
Outdoor Space
All residents of Taymount Grange enjoy the use of communal gardens to the front and rear of the building. These tranquil spaces include a shared barbecue area and established allotments with a variety of fruit trees and a natural wildlife area.
The Area
Taymount Grange is located close to the Horniman Museum and Gardens. It’s well-placed for the shops and restaurants of Dulwich Village and East Dulwich, as well as the open spaces of Sydenham Woods and Dulwich Park. Local highlights include Bona, Pantry, and Aga’s Little Deli, while St David serves excellent coffee.
All of the amenities of Forest Hill, including its railway station, are approximately five minutes away on foot. Regular trains run from Forest Hill to London Bridge, with a journey time of 12 minutes. The station is also a part of the London Overground, with services running to Dalston via Canada Water (Jubilee Line), Shadwell (DLR), Shoreditch High Street and Whitechapel (District, Hammersmith & City and Elizabeth Lines).
Tenure: Leasehold
Lease Length: Approx. 110 years remaining
Service Charge: Approx. £2,500 per annum
Ground Rent: Approx. £100 per annum
Council Tax Band: A
Please note that all areas, measurements and distances given in these particulars are approximate and rounded. The text, photographs and floor plans are for general guidance only. The Modern House has not tested any services, appliances or specific fittings — prospective purchasers are advised to inspect the property themselves. All fixtures, fittings and furniture not specifically itemised within these particulars are deemed removable by the vendor.
History
Taymount Grange was built in 1935 to designs by English architect George Bertram Carter. Carter had studied at Blackheath School of Art between 1911 and 1915 before joining the Royal School of Art. He worked at Edwin Lutyens’ office as a student before setting up his own practice in Clifford’s Inn in 1929. Prior to Taymount Grange, Carter was responsible for two large factory designs in Tottenham and Whitechapel respectively. Carter designed both Taymount Grange and Lichfield Court, Richmond, in 1935.
Taymount Grange sits at the top of Taymount Rise in Forest Hill, on the previous sites of Taymount, a 19th-century house, and Queens Tennis Club. It embodies the ‘style moderne’ aesthetic that stemmed from the art deco movement during the 1930s. Unlike art deco, style moderne – also known as ‘streamline moderne’ or ‘ocean liner style’ – prioritised clean shapes, long horizontal forms, and a lack of ornamentation.
In his thesis The Servant Problem Solved: Modernist 1930s Residential Blocks, Damian Minto describes the history of Taymount Grange:
“[It] is built on the site of the original Queens tennis club. An important similarity with many modernist schemes was the fact that the existing earlier building (often a detached villa) was to be demolished to make way for the new block of flats. The site’s natural contours made it an ideal location for panoramic views of the London docks and rural edges of suburbia, a feature of which the flats take full advantage. The aimed new tenants were the middle classes – an important similarity with all modernist British residential schemes.
“Facilities available for residents included guestrooms, lounge, restaurant, terrace, landscaped gardens, swimming pool, seven tennis courts and a putting green. Taymount Grange was also fully staffed with everyone from porters to domestic help.”
From the expanses of white-painted stucco to the handsome metal windows and chrome-handled entrance doors, Taymount Grange has retained its unmistakably 1930s details that give it a romantic and modernist appeal.
