Thornton Heath’s historical clocktower has reopened following restoration work, after it was severely damaged in a fire last year.

The clocktower, dating back to 1900, was built to commemorate the turn of the century, costing £300 at the time of its construction.

Standing at the junction of Brigstock Road, Thornton Heath High Street and Parchmore Road, the clocktower sustained damage following a fire in September 2022.

Last year the Executive Mayor of Croydon, Jason Perry, made pledges to have the historic building restored after it was vandalised.

The works, partly funded by the council insurance and risk financing arrangements, carried out works to replace the tower's clock faces as well as repair its electrical elements.

Additional works to the building included reparations to the roof, which was removed and remade using new copper covering.

Repair works were conducted by the original makers of the clock, Gillet and Johnston, who worked on replacing the four clock faces, as well as work from specialist restorers Stonewest to clean and repair the stonework of the clocktower.

Jason Perry, Executive Mayor of Croydon, said: “When Thornton Heath Clocktower was vandalised, I promised to restore the landmark to its former glory.

“The clocktower has withstood two world wars and I was not prepared to let it remain damaged after an act of vandalism.

“The restoration of the tower is part of restoring pride in Thornton Heath and across our borough, and I want to thank all those involved in helping to rebuild this historic and much-loved landmark.”

Andrew Charles, Contracts Manager at Graham, the principal contractors on behalf of Croydon Council, said: “We worked alongside our specialist team Stonewest for the restoration project, which included careful stone cleaning and repair, creating new timber substrate, installing the new timber roof and copper covering and a new solid metal door.

“We would like to thank everyone involved for their hard work in restoring the clocktower, and making it possible to deliver this impressive iconic piece of history back to the community of Thornton Heath.”