Am I Really Still In Crawley?

The weekends come so quickly in lockdown, and it is Saturday again before we know it. Snow is promised for the weekend, so when it looks like reasonable weather outside, we decide to head out for a walk again. Apart from the three pubs drinks have been partaken in, which we will pass on our route, it is another part of Crawley that I haven’t walked around. And the Tinsley Green and Fernhill areas are parts of Crawley that most wouldn’t even realise fall under Crawley Borough Council’s remit.

We park up near Charlie’s (in Manor Royal, not the home of the Scooby Burger at Three Bridges Station), and walk the hundred or so yards away from where we were heading to the Grade II listed building tucked away in Manor Royal — Little Orchards.

Originally from the sixteenth century, it has been built on and extended at various points since then, and it has a nice end chimney that leans at an interesting angle.

A quick turn about follows, and we turn onto Radford Road and go over the railway and down to the Greyhound.

A locally listed building from the 1930’s, it is famous for holding the world marble championships, to which there is not only a Blue Plaque on its walls, but also a red Famous Grouse one as well.

We walk around the side and into Tinsley Green around the back of it. Up on the first floor at the back is what looks to be a series of marquee type tent structures, as if they are preparing the area to be a balcony area when they can eventually reopen some time in the late spring early summer.

Next to the pub is Greyhound Cottage, another locally listed building, this one dating from the 1780s.

On the other side of the rough track that is Tinsley Green is Cherrytree Cottage, a Grade II listed building dating from the seventeenth century.

We walk up to the end of the track getting there as a train breaks the silence running north just in front of us. There are a lot of nice houses here and two to our left as we turn and head back to the main road are Newbridge and Zell cottages, originally from the 18th century, but altered since, they are weatherboarded and have slate roofs.

A new footpath can be seen heading across what is left of the fields behind Tinsley Green, over towards Forge Wood, but we head straight ahead along Radford Road, and on the west side of it, the side without any pavements are three Grade II listed buildings in a row.

First up is Brookside, from the mid seventeenth century,

Then it is Oldlands Farm House, which dates from the early seventeenth century, although it looks more modern.

Finally, is Radford Farmhouse. Older than its two neighbours, it is from the sixteenth century, thought specifically from the 1550s. It is the second of two remaining thatched cottages in Crawley, following on from Green Lane Old Cottage that we had walked past and written about two weeks ago.

The rest of Radford Road has a mish mash of styles of houses and bungalows in varying states of upkeep. Halfway along this stretch is one house named Border Cottage, which going back just over thirty years ago would have been an accurate description as the border to Surrey would have been here until it was reset in 1990 to include all the land west of the M23 and south of the M23 spur to Gatwick Airport (and the Airport itself) within Crawley Borough Council and so into West Sussex.

We turn onto Balcombe Road heading north, passing a whole line of what look to be 1930s builds, mainly gated, I suppose mansions would be an accurate term. The one that stands out amongst the long stretch of house envy is the yellow one.

The houses stop and there is open land either side of the road, most of which is waterlogged, with poor soggy donkeys out in the fields trying to find a raised dry bit of land to avoid the mud pits. Empty, closed, and barricaded former airport parking runs down one side of the road, and we can see the Marriott hotel building, which unknown at this point is where we are heading. The road becomes national speed limit along here and its difficult to ascertain which is more dangerous to us, the speeding traffic flying past, or the inconsiderate, impatient joggers trying to push us into the road or ditch despite us changing to walking single file to give them space on the narrow footpath.

We turn on to Buckingham Gate, a couple of hundred yards away from where the M23 spur runs over the Balcombe Road marking the end of Crawley. To our left is the massive Schlumberger House.

Now I’m not a big fan of 1980s brick-built behemoths, but the way this one has been built, and the grounds around it landscaped makes it look an impressive structure, and as if it would be a great location to have as an office. The various terraces all have greenery growing in them, which softens the whole look of it.

Beyond the building, and in the grounds of the Marriott are the two co-joined Tudor houses that I wanted to see most of all on this walk.

Wing House, from the mid sixteenth century, it had used to be the airport staff social club until 2006.

And Edgeworth House, slightly older from c1520s.

Both sit surrounded by paths and landscaping for the hotel, but both have the appearance of being criminally neglected.

I’m not sure who owns the buildings, but it would appear to be the hotel, seeing as Edgeworth House is rammed full of unused tables and chairs; and if so then I can’t understand why they aren’t a) taking better care of the fabric of the buildings (broken windows, peeling paintwork etc), and b) making full use of their history.

I know that there are a lot of hoops to jump through to use statutory listed buildings for any new purpose, but there are plenty of examples where it has been done to great effect in other parts of the country. Not only that but tourists, especially Americans would lap the Tudor history perspective up.

Mini rant over.

We head back out to Balcombe Road and turn south until we get to Fernhill Road and head along into Fernhill hamlet. The first buildings we come to are those of Fern Court Farm, where this nineteenth century brick barn is adjoined by more modern and more ramshackle buildings.

Further along is the wonderfully named Donkey Lane along which are two Grade II listed cottages. The first of which is the imaginatively named Old Cottage dating from the late seventeenth / early eighteenth century, and which is undergoing running repairs.

And then further along is Lilac Cottage, a bit more modern, dating as it does from the late eighteenth century.

Just to the left of the junction Fernhill Road has with Peeks Brook Lane is the former Baptist Touchwood Chapel, a locally listed building, which still shows its cross and date (1885) on the gable, but is now a private house.

We walk up to the end of Peeks Brook Lane, passing as we do Poplars, a nineteenth century locally listed building whose photo I thought I’d taken wasn’t on my camera; and the final resting place of the Anthill Mob’s charabanc.

The lane carries on under the M23 spur, and the hundred yards or so from under the bridge to the point where it changes from road to track sees the council responsible for it change from Crawley to Tandridge and then to Reigate and Banstead. If I were Usain Bolt, I could be in three council’s jurisdictions in ten seconds, but I’m not, and I don’t bother. Instead, we head back south and pass Gatwick House.

Originally from the 1870s it has its castellated clock tower; it was extended in the early twentieth century in a neo-Georgian style and has been extended substantially since then in a variety of styles.

Next to it is Royal Oak House, a grand 1880s house and substantial grounds which again inexplicably I don’t appear to have the photos I was sure I’d taken of it. A road disappears to the east over the motorway and on the other side of it are the Pullcotts Farm Cottages, two brick-built cottages of uncertain age, but are probably at least nineteenth century.

Just before the main road (the modern Antlands Lane) is the old Antlands Lane, well the western part of it as the old road was cut in two by the coming of the motorway. At the end before the fence for the motorway, in the distance along its drive is Teziers Farmhouse, a Grade II listed building from the seventeenth century with additions from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

We head back towards Balcombe Road, taking a last detour in Fernhill to get some views of Burstow Hall, a locally listed building from the mid nineteenth century, formerly part of Burstow parish until the re-bordering in 1990, when it was absorbed by Crawley. We had caught glimpses of it as we’d walked down Peeks Brook Lane, and from the neighbouring garden centre. It is another impressive structure hidden away from all but the most inquisitive eyes.

On Balcombe Road we cross over Radford Road and have another flurry of locally listed buildings. To the east of the road is the Cottage in the Wood, built in the 1930s in the picturesque style.

Then there is the Parson’s Pig. The back has had the hotel added in an attempt at a sympathetic style, but it is the front old pub part of the building from the nineteenth century in the Arts and Crafts style that gets the listing.

And a little bit further along is the eighteenth century The Open Door, its upper story dark weatherboarding and slate roof all that can be seen behind the substantial hedge.

I miss the path that would have taken me towards the Grade II listed Toovies Farmhouse as we carried on along Balcombe Road, with the old-style house on the corner with Steers Lane on one side.

And this lovely green house on the other.

Then we are at Heathy Ground Farmhouse, now a pub, but a Grade II listed building (see what could be done with one if they put their mind to it for Wing and Edgeworth houses), from the sixteenth century with a nineteenth century wing added.

We cross over and into the woods along a new winding path added as part of the build of Forge Wood phase two.

The crematorium building can be seen through the trees to the south as we walk along and pop out amongst the new builds of Forge Wood. I take a few snaps of road signs, not knowing if there is a theme going on here, but I have some now with the very fetching magenta coloured Forge Wood name. Although there looks like there could be some naming controversies going on already as part of the district name is already being peeled from some of the signs.

Out of new build land we are on Steers Lane and as we approach its junction with Radford Road, we pass the last of the listed buildings for the day, the Grade II listed Tinsley Farmhouse from the eighteenth century, and its wooden outbuilding.

From here it is a stagger back up over the railway track and into Manor Royal and to the car. My fatbit had had an exciting day buzzing my arm to notify me of 10,00 steps (my daily target), and the first time I’d hit 20,000 and 25,000 in a day since getting it. It may be glad, though I’m not sure my knees feel the same way. They will get a few days off before the next route march as snow stops play.