Shops and restaurants
West Norwood’s main shopping street is along Norwood Road, High Street and Knights Hill. A mixed bag but with a growing number of coffee shops and places to eat, Norwood Road is dominated by a large branch of B&Q.
The site was acquired last year by Lambeth council, which wants to see the site redeveloped, so the future of the DIY retailer is uncertain.
There are high street chains KFC, Superdrug, Iceland and the Co-op. Independent cafés and restaurants include The Electric Dining Room, a period piece greasy spoon; Thai Duck, a café and deli with a selection of Thai dishes; Chocolate & Champagne, a bakery, patisserie and café; Knowles of Norwood, part of the Antic pub chain; Four Hundred Rabbits, a growing pizza chain; Blackbird Bakery with seven bakeries and cafés in south London; Otter, which also sells children’s wear and gifts; Pintadera, an Italian café and deli; The Great North Wood, a popular pub with a standard pub menu; and Sweet Carolina, a daytime café open in the evening on Fridays and Saturdays.
The Portico Gallery is an art and community space and Roseberys is south London’s leading auction house, both are in Knights Hill.
Over in West Dulwich, the Rosendale in Rosendale Road is a pub with a large dining room, and Volcano is a coffee roaster with a café in the Parkhall Trading Estate.
Open space
With the exception of the cemetery there is not much green space in the town centre.
Norwood Park in Elder Road to the south of the neighbourhood occupies a hilly site with views towards central London; it has a playground, outdoor gym, skatepark, café and multi-use games area.
Tivoli Park in Knights Hill is a small local park which is undergoing improvements. Crystal Palace Park with its giant dinosaur statues, skatepark, maze, urban farm and the listed National Sports Centre with an Olympic-size swimming pool is nearby.
Leisure and the arts
The South London Theatre is a busy amateur dramatics theatre housed in a former Victorian fire station in High Street.
A four-screen Picturehouse cinema opened in November 2018 in a local council building which also houses the local library and a café.
The Friends of West Norwood Cemetery conduct general tours on the first Sunday of the month, special themed tours during the summer and meetings and talks during the winter.
The local council-owned swimming pool is at West Norwood Health and Leisure Centre in the town centre in Devane Way.
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