This is our twelfth update since 2019 closure to motorised transport.  The last time we reported on the bridge was nearly three years ago, when boreholes were being drilled to assess the strength of the river bed as part of preparation for straightening and potentially enacting the Foster-Cowi proposal.  Since then, the cracked pedestals have been filled, cast iron decorative covers completely removed, and the roadway resurfaced and reopened as a cycleway / walkway only, though high speed electric bikes and scooters whizz across it too.…
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The Hammersmith Society’s committee was pleased that the Council’s Planning Committee refused consent for the Phoenix Academy/London Square application for a combined educational and residential development at Phoenix Academy, which was of considerable concern to local people. Residents’ associations, with whom committee members had been in contact, raised a formidable campaign against the overbuilt proposal.

The planning application is here: 2025/02541/FUL and earlier scoping is 2024/03003/SCOEIA. The application is registered in the planning portal as ‘under assessment’, and provided the above image, demonstrating the inappropriate scale of the proposal.…
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Nomination for a Tom Ryland Award for Conservation, 2026.

Margravine Cemetery Wall at the top end of Margravine Gardens, is opposite the Grade II listed station.  Nominated by a resident who says: “The wall is on a slope and on a curve, and is over 26m long and on the street 2-3m high above pavement, while in the cemetery it varies between over 4m high to 2m high above ground level. We, Friends of Margavine Cemetery, noticed it was cracking at the top and leaning out in 2024, and notified the council, who then fenced off the footway in front.…
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(AGM Photos: Anne Farthing. Click for larger versions)

Attached is this year’s Annual Report, reviewing the key activities of the Society, and at least three local megaprojects, this year also providing a reflection on the outgoing chairman’s three year term.

Subjects include:

• The changing face of Hammersmith
• Projects in development 
• Local Plan
• Hammersmith Bridge
• Committee members
• Reflections on Chairmanship 2022-2025

The agenda, accounts and other AGM information are or will be on the dedicated 2025 AGM page.

Our member Edward Rose has thoroughly researched the Black Bull, which we wrote about in 2022, and has now written the 180-page self-published book pictured, which he’s offering to members.

Since we wrote the original article, we’ve been working with Heritage of London Trust to try to find a suitable new home, and arrange for it to be restored, in a similar way to the Greek Runner and Leaning Woman.  We’ve been jointly investigating the somewhat opaque ownership of this Grade II listed figure as a precursor, work which continues. …
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Nomination for a Tom Ryland Award for Conservation, 2025.

Nominated by a member who says:  “The Hawthorn is on the corner of Thorpebank Rd and the Uxbridge Rd in Shepherds Bush. The pub was first built in 1878 and was taken over earlier this year by Peter Creed and Tom Noest of Publican Pubs  They also run five pubs in the Cotswolds and are well established in the hospitality industry.

They have completely renovated this lovely building, both inside and out.…
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Nomination for a Wooden Spoon, 2025.

The Uxbridge road at its Shepherds Bush end has struggled for some years, and has been nominated for a wooden spoon in a number of respects this year, and by several people. There has been a significant amount of public interest and debate with the council, most recently a petition was put to the council to “Fix the Uxbridge Road”, and there’s been a proposal for a Business Improvement District for Shepherds Bush too. …
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