The Mansion: 1906 to the present

• 1906 - 1993
• 1995 - 2005
• Restoration plans

1906 - 1993

In the first decade of the 20th century a powerful pressure group, the Valentines Park Extension Council, was formed. As well as leading members of Ilford Council and local clergy, it included five MPs, two JPs, one Lord Temporal, Lord Claude Hamilton, one Lord Spiritual, the Bishop of Barking, Sir John Bethell and the owner of the Valentines Estate, Holcombe Ingleby.

Their aim was to persuade Ilford Council to purchase both the estate and the mansion as Holcombe Ingleby was keen to sell up at a very reasonable price and retire to his estate in Norfolk. Despite this formidable array of influential people, there was strong opposition from some councillors who wished to use the Council's option to sell out to developers and thus solve any cash flow problems the Council might encounter for the foreseeable future.

The extension Council won the day and in 1912, Ilford Council purchased the land for £10,630 and the house and its outbuildings for a mere £1,000. Unfortunately, an enlightened plan to develop the mansion as a cultural centre fell by the wayside due to the cataclysmic effects of the first world war 1914 -1918. During the war the mansion provided shelter for Belgian refugees. Unfortunately, there appears to be no photographic evidence of this period. In the years that followed, the mansion was used, abused and neglected by both Ilford and Redbridge Councils and provided accommodation first for the Public Health Department from 1925 onwards followed by Redbridge Housing Department 1965-1993.

In 1989, there was another surge of popular interest. The local historical societies collected a petition containing some 8,100 signatures, which was presented to the Council by Councillor Frank Cobb, a Mayor of Redbridge, requesting that the mansion be used as a museum. The cost of restoring the mansion was considered to be prohibitive.

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1995 - 2005

The years 1995-1999 were years of controversy. Redbridge Council proposed to grant a 50-year lease to Whitbreads for a Brewers' Fayre. Three local groups combined together to oppose the scheme; Cranbrook Residents' Association, Garden City neighbourhood Watch and Friends of Valentines Park.

In 1999, Redbridge Council sought advice from a Citizens' Jury, which at a cost of £10,000 recommended a mixture of uses - residential, community and a restaurant. The Steering Group formed in the year 2000 the same year as the Friends was entrusted with the responsibility of producing a business plan, which would make the mansion self supporting that could form the basis for a bid for heritage lottery funds. After eighteen months careful research and planning a business plan was submitted to the Council which it adopted. Heritage Lottery recommended that we reconsider and redraft our application for various reasons including the fact that they were not prepared to commit public funds to the provision of three residential flats on the top floor or a profit making restaurant. It also wished to see greater commitment from the Council and the compilation of a conservation plan.

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Restoration plans

Over the past year, 2004, the council has taken on the full responsibility of revising the business plan with the aid of generous professional advice. This plan has now been submitted to Heritage Lottery - December 2004.

The three key aims of the restoration project are stated as being:

1. To conserve, restore, maintain and enhance the heritage value of Valentines Mansion.
2. To establish the Mansion as a valuable educational resource with regard to the historical and architectural value of the building.
3. To provide high quality facilities for recreational and leisure activities for the residents of the London Borough of Redbridge.

The educational aims include:

• Valentines Mansion to be used for the whole community in creating a rich and exciting educational experience.
• The mansion will provide a unique resource for local schools as it is ideally suited to provide formal structured lessons on Victorian life, local history and citizenship.
• It is intended that the Dairy Wing of the mansion will be utilised as an education space.
• It is intended to provide period show rooms, which will cater for a variety of learning styles and techniques.
• The mansion will open regularly on Sundays and guided tours and mixed events programmes will be provided for adults and families.
• It is intended that educational features of the mansion will be linked to Valentines Park with the development of family focus trails and guides which will demonstrate the close relationship between the mansion and the surrounding parkland.
• The mansion will be used for adult education activities. It will be used as both a resource and venue for history, art and horticulture based courses. Organisations such as the Workers' Education Association and the Adult Education Institute are committed to using the mansion for special events and conferences for adult learners.
• The mansion will provide a premier location for a wide range of events hosted by both the local authority and the voluntary sector.

General Use by the Community

It is intended that the property will be open to the whole community. An Ethnic Minority Audience Strategy, which includes an action plan for involving minority audiences, has been submitted in addition to the business plan The building will be fully accessible to people with disabilities. It is intended that the Mansion will include extensive and diverse events programming in tandem with Valentines Park.

The learning potential of the Mansion will be linked to the educational features of Valentines Park, which as stated in the education aims will give opportunities for families to participate in activities which link the Mansion to the surrounding parkland.

The business plan also stipulates that representatives from the Trust and Friends will sit on the Advisory Committee for Education and the Events Steering Group. Local groups will be able to hire rooms at reasonable prices.

Business Use and Sources of Income

• When the Mansion is fully restored, the public will be able to visit on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from noon to 5.00 p.m. and on the first and second Sundays of the month. There will be a charge for entry.
• The Council will make an annual grant.
• The main source of income will come from civil weddings/party hire. A full day hire will be available every Saturday and a full day hire will also be available on two Sundays per month and Friday evenings throughout the year.
• When the Mansion is not open to the public on Monday, Thursday and Friday, there will be scope for a single business/organisation to book the whole mansion or for several organisations to rent single or multiple rooms.
• Three rooms of varying sizes will be available for hire on Monday to
• Thursday evenings by voluntary organisations.
• Further regular income will be raised through education course charges to schools. Times of educational visits will be arraanged at mutually convenient times..
• It is intended to set up eight creative studio/workshops on the top floor as there is a shortage of such facilities available to London artists.
• It is anticipated that there will be substantial and mixed event programmes organised both by the local authority and voluntary groups.

Redbridge Council will retain control of Valentines Mansion for the foreseeable future. However, the Trust, "the Friends" and Valentines Park Conservationists will have a significant input in their role as junior partners with the Council in future planning.

It is gratifying to note that volunteer organisations such as the Conservationists and "Friends" continue to be very active in organising events, raising funds and facilitating improvements to the mansion and adjacent gardens. It is envisaged that these groups will continue to play an active role in devising and managing weekend events. Both local residents' associations, the Cranbrook Residents' Association and the Garden City Neighbourhood Watch continue to show a strong interest in the Mansion and to make generous donations to mansion projects from time to time.

Valentines Mansion Trust continues to enjoy the support of our patron, Tony Robinson, who on the 14th February 2004 entertained a capacity audience at Valentines High School for a Valentines Mansion Trust social and fund-raising evening.

John Manuel
Chairman, Valentines Mansion Trust

Note: updates on the Mansion's restoration can be found from the 'Explore' section of our website.

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