Editing Welling

{{Short description|Town in South East London, England}}
{{About|the district in London}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2015}}
{{More citations needed|date=January 2011}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country                  = England
| map_type                 = Greater London
| region                   = London
| population               = 41000
| official_name            = Welling
| static_image_name        = From Inferno to Tesco - geograph.org.uk - 2860955.jpg
| static_image_caption     = Shops on Bellegrove Road
| coordinates              = {{coord|51.4594|0.1097|display=inline,title}}
| london_borough           = Bexley
| constituency_westminster = [[Old Bexley and Sidcup (UK Parliament constituency)|Old Bexley & Sidcup]] and [[Bexleyheath and Crayford (UK Parliament constituency)|Bexleyheath and Crayford]]
| charingX_distance_mi     = 10.5
| charingX_direction       = WNW
| post_town                = WELLING
| postcode_area            = DA
| postcode_district        = DA16
| dial_code                = 020
| os_grid_reference        = TQ465755
}}
'''Welling''' is a town in [[South East (London sub region)|South East London]], [[England]], in the [[London Borough of Bexley]], {{convert|1.5|miles|km}} west of [[Bexleyheath]], {{convert|4|miles|km}} southeast of [[Woolwich]] and {{convert|10.5|miles|km}} of [[Charing Cross]]. It was part of [[Kent]] prior to the creation of [[Greater London]] in 1965.

==Etymology==
Local legend has it that Welling is so called because in the era of horse-drawn vehicles it could be said you were "well in" to Kent,{{cn|date=February 2025}} or had a "well end" to the journey up and down [[Shooters Hill]]{{cn|date=February 2025}} which, at the time was steep, had a poor road surface and was a notorious haunt of [[highwaymen]].<ref name="DoverRoad">{{cite book|url=http://www.gutenberg.org/files/36589/36589.txt|title=The Dover Road|author=Charles G. Harper|date=1895|publisher=Wildhern Press|isbn=9781848300101}}</ref> Until the 1800s, most of Welling down to [[Blackfen]] was covered in woodland which offered excellent concealment for outlaws and robbers who would prey on vulnerable slow-moving horse-drawn traffic.

Local historians have recently concluded that the origin of the name is most likely from ''Welwyn'' (meaning 'place of the spring'), due to the existence of an underground spring located at Welling Corner, or possibly a manorial reference to the Willing family, who lived in the area in 1301.<ref name="Mills2011">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tXucAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA488|title=A Dictionary of British Place-Names|author=David Mills|date=20 October 2011|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-960908-6|pages=488–}}</ref> The town was referred to as 'Wellen' in [[John Ogilby|John Ogilby's]] 1675 road atlas.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Wareham |first1=Tom |title=Oxleas: History, Conservation and Connection in a suburban Woodland |date=2020 |publisher=Independently published |isbn=979-8656197311 |page=20}}</ref>

==History==
=== Early history ===
[[File:Southern Face of the Greek Orthodox Church of Christ the Saviour, Welling (I).jpg|thumb|left|The medieval church in Welling, now used by a Greek Orthodox congregation]]
The [[East Wickham]] part of Welling is probably one of the oldest settlements in this area. A Neolithic stone axe was found in East Wickham in 1910, and remains of Roman buildings were unearthed near Danson in 1989.{{specify|date=November 2016}}

Before opening of the [[Bexleyheath Line]] on 1 May 1895,<ref>{{cite web|title=The Bexleyheath Railway|url=http://www.bexley.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=10666|website=bexley.gov.uk|access-date=8 January 2017}}</ref> Welling was a village on the main road from London into [[Kent]] ([[Watling Street]]). It had been a traditional staging post for coaches; the presence of three inns along the main road is the result of that.{{specify|date=November 2016}}

=== 20th century ===
After [[World War I]], [[Municipal Borough of Bexley|Bexley Urban District Council]] built over 400 houses north of the railway. Later, when the [[Danson House|Danson]] estate was sold to developers, the land to the south was opened up to suburban sprawl and the settlement incorporated the local parishes of St Michael's East Wickham and St Johns Welling

The area was part of the [[Municipal Borough of Bexley]] in the administrative county of [[Kent]] until, in 1965, the borough was abolished under the [[London Government Act 1963]] and its area transferred to [[Greater London]] to form part of the present-day [[London Borough of Bexley]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1963/33/contents|title=London Government Act 1963|website=www.legislation.gov.uk}}</ref>

For five years after 1990, the headquarters of the far-right [[British National Party]] (formed in 1982) were based in Welling.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Politico's Guide to the History of British Political Parties|last=Boothroyd|first=David|year=2001|publisher=Politico's|isbn=1-902301-59-5|page=22}}</ref> The area became the scene of anti-racist [[1993 Welling riots|riots in 1993]]. Bexley Council shut down the BNP Headquarters in 1995.<ref name=bnpclosed>Saggar, Shamit (1998). Race and British electoral politics. Routledge. {{ISBN|1-85728-830-0}}.</ref>

In 1992 a group of local people, led by local Councillor Nigel Betts, revived the old Memorial Hall Trust which was set up in 1921.{{Citation needed|date=March 2019}} In 1995 it started operation as a local grant giving charity called the East Wickham & Welling War Memorial Trust[1] using the revenue from the old hall to fund grants in the area. Its main aim is remember the men of the district who were killed in World War One so a new War Memorial was built in 1996. Its charitable aim is to help local groups with rents on their meeting places or to help groups maintain their halls. Other grants help young people with adventurous activities and there is an annual academic bursary. In 2006 it gave grants totaling £47,000. As part of a re-investment programme, the Trust sold the Hall for a housing redevelopment in 2007.

=== 21st century ===
A major upgrade of paving and street lighting was completed in the autumn of 2005. The retention or removal of a section of westbound bus lane from Welling High Street became one of the few specific local issues on which the main political parties disagreed in the approach to the local [[Bexley London Borough Council|Bexley Council]] elections held on 4 May 2006. The incoming Conservative administration immediately revoked the bus lane.

The MECCA bingo hall in [[Upper Wickham Lane]] has ceased trading, apparently one of nine in England unsuited to operate after the national ban on smoking in public places.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/f214a940-bc98-11db-9cbc-0000779e2340.html#axzz1JjRobGBY |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/652Go |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Financial Times "Rank to close nine Mecca clubs"|last=Warwick|first=Lucy|date=15 February 2007|publisher=Ft.com|access-date=6 March 2014}}</ref> This large building, which originally was an Odeon cinema is operating now as Freedom Centre International, a Pentecostal Church.

==Education==

{{main|London Borough of Bexley#Education}}

Secondary schools in Welling include:
*[[Bexley Grammar School]]
*[[Harris Academy Falconwood]]
*[[Welling School]]

Primary schools in Welling include:
* Bishop Ridley CofE Primary School (formerly Westwood Primary School)
* Danson Primary School
* East Wickham Primary Academy
* Eastcote Primary School
* Fosters Primary School
* Hillsgrove Primary School
* Hook Lane Primary School
* St Michael's East Wickham CoE Primary School
* St Stephen's Catholic Primary School
* Aspire Academy Bexley (formerly Westbrooke School)

==Culture==

The "Old Koffi Pot" café, dating from the 1930s was until the early 1990s known as 'Ferrara's'. The venue was well known locally for its ice cream and enjoyed its heyday at the height of the 1960s [[coffee culture|cafe culture]], when young people from [[Kent]] and [[SE postcode area|South East London]] would call in for refreshments on the way to or from dancing at the Embassy Ballroom (since demolished to make way for the building of Embassy Court). The "Old Koffi Pot" closed in 2009 for 'economic reasons', but a modern coffee shop has since opened in its place retaining the name "The Koffi Shop" but a brand new black frontage and interior decor have removed any historical link with the original establishment.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}}

== Landmarks ==
[[File:Welling cannon.jpg|thumb|Russian Cannon from [[Crimean War]], located at Welling Corner]]A large Russian cannon is located at Welling corner. This Russian weapon is a 36-pounder carronade (calibre 6.75&nbsp;inches – weight 17 cwt) of a type used during the [[Crimean War]] (1854 to 1860), displayed on a simple wooden replica carriage. The carronade was in service from 1780 to 1860 and is now on loan from the [[Royal Artillery Museum]] in [[Woolwich]] as a reminder of Welling's early association with the [[Royal Arsenal]], Woolwich, when huts at East Wickham were built as homes for munitions workers in the Great War.

The former Foster's School building in [[Upper Wickham Lane]] is a local landmark. The school relocated to Westbrooke Road in Welling and its original site was converted to residential use (retaining the old Grade II listed main school building and headmaster's house).

Further north of the original site is the 12th-century former St Michael's, East Wickham church, now used by a [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Greek Orthodox]] congregation. A new St Michael's church was built next door in 1933, and the original church became a [[chapel of ease]]. It was declared redundant in 1973 and acquired by the Orthodox the following year.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://southwark.anglican.org/downloads/lostchurches/EAS08.pdf|title=Former Churches of the Diocese of Southwark: St Michael, East Wickham|access-date=18 February 2021}}</ref> Another church in the area is [[St Mary's Church, Welling]], a daughter church of St Michael's, which was built in 1955 and which contains a number of examples of 20th-century liturgical art.<ref name="SouthwarkAnglican">{{Cite web|url=https://southwark.anglican.org/find-a-church/plumstead/welling-st-mary-the-virgin|title=Diocese of Southwark: St Mary the Virgin, Welling|access-date=14 February 2021}}</ref>

==Transport==
===Rail===
[[File:Railway overbridge, Welling, Kent - geograph.org.uk - 147665.jpg|thumb|Railway overbridge in Welling]]
[[Welling railway station|Welling station]] connects the area with [[National Rail]] services on the [[Bexleyheath line]] to [[London Victoria railway station|London Victoria]], [[Charing Cross railway station|London Charing Cross]], [[Cannon Street railway station|London Cannon Street]], [[Slade Green railway station|Slade Green]], [[Dartford railway station|Dartford]] and [[Gravesend railway station|Gravesend]].

===Buses===
Welling is served by [[London Buses]] routes [[London Buses route 51|51]], [[London Buses route 89|89]], [[London Buses route 96|96]], [[London Buses route 486|486]], [[London Buses route B15|B15]], [[London Buses route B16|B16]] and [[London Buses route N89|N89]]. These connect it with places including [[Barnehurst]], [[Bexleyheath]], [[Blackfen]], [[Blackheath, London|Blackheath]], [[Bluewater (shopping centre)|Bluewater]], [[Charlton, London|Charlton]], [[Crayford]], [[Dartford]], [[Eltham, London|Eltham]], [[Falconwood]], [[Kidbrooke]], [[Lewisham]], [[Greenwich Peninsula|North Greenwich]], [[Orpington]], [[Plumstead]], [[Shooters Hill]], [[Sidcup]], [[Slade Green]], [[St Mary Cray]] and [[Woolwich]].

==Sport and leisure==
[[File:Pvrmainstand.jpg|thumb|[[Park View Road]] ground, home of [[Welling United F.C.|Welling United Football Club]]]]Welling has two [[Non-League football]] clubs [[Welling United F.C.]] & [[Erith & Belvedere F.C.]], who both play at Park View Road.{{cn|date=December 2023}}

==Notable people==
* [[Kate Bush]] (1958–), singer/songwriter, grew up in East Wickham Farm on Wickham Street<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/2448082.pupils_at_former_abbey_wood_school_sought/|title=Pupils at Former Abbey Wood School Sought|date=17 September 2008|publisher=Newsshopper.co.uk|access-date=6 March 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.katebushencyclopedia.com/east-wickham-farm|title=East Wickham Farm|website=Kate Bush Encyclopaedia|access-date=26 March 2018}}</ref>
* [[Anjem Choudary]] (1967–), [[Islamism|Islamist]] political activist, born and grew up in Welling<ref name="Telegraphprofile">{{Citation|last=Wardrop|first=Murray|title=Anjem Choudary: profile|date=4 January 2010|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/terrorism-in-the-uk/6930447/Anjem-Choudary-profile.html|publisher=telegraph.co.uk|access-date=4 January 2010}}</ref>
*[[Ernest Greenwood (artist)|Ernest Greenwood]] (1913–2009), artist, teacher and former president of the [[Royal Watercolour Society]], born in Welling<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/ernest-greenwood-artist-and-administrator-whose-efforts-revived-the-fortunes-of-the-royal-watercolour-society-1780705.html|title=Ernest Greenwood: Artist and administrator whose efforts revived the fortunes of the Royal Watercolour Society|website=[[Independent.co.uk]] |date=3 September 2009}}</ref>
* [[Steve Hillier]] (1969–), musician, DJ, record producer <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dubstar.com/|title=Every Dubstar song|website=Every Dubstar song}}</ref> 
* [[Bill Peyto]] (1869–1943), pioneering Canadian mountain guide and park ranger, born in Welling<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pioneersalberta.org/profiles/p.html#peyto|title=Pioneer Profiles|website=pioneersalberta.org|access-date=22 November 2016}}</ref>
* [[Tom Raworth]] (1938–2017), poet and visual artist, born in Bexleyheath and grew up in Welling<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Dnqi3gRxgvQC&q=tom+raworth+bexleyheath&pg=RA1-PA312|title=Encyclopaedia of British Writers, 19th and 20th centuries|last1=Krueger|first1=Christine L.|date=1 July 2014|publisher=Infobase Publishing|page=312|isbn=9781438108704|access-date=13 November 2016}}</ref>
* [[John Waller (fight director)|John Waller]] (1940–2018), English [[historical European martial arts]] (HEMA) revival pioneer and [[fight director]], born in Welling<ref>{{cite journal |title=John Waller — A Life Remembered |first=Guy |last=Wilson |author-link=Guy Wilson (historian) |journal=[[Arms & Armour]] |publisher=[[Royal Armouries]] |volume=15 |year=2018 |issue=2 |pages=113–121 |doi=10.1080/17416124.2018.1522141 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Welling, London}}
* [http://www.discoverwelling.co.uk Discover Welling - Official Website of Welling]
* [http://www.wellingweather.com Welling Weather]
* [http://www.wellingunited.com/ Welling United Official Site]
* [https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2860955 Station Hotel, now a Tesco Express since 2011/12 (photograph)]
{{LB Bexley}}
{{London Districts}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Areas of London]]
[[Category:Districts of the London Borough of Bexley]]
[[Category:District centres of London]]