We need to put the heritage back into Fleet Street

Ever since the newspapers left in the Eighties, Fleet Street has been losing a bit of its zing every year. Big banks and law firms have come – and gone. And there’s little to show that Fleet Street was once the heart of the newspaper industry

We’ve been working successfully to change this for four years

We’ve designed and put up the Fleet Street Heritage Sundial, which has the names of 5 heritage newspapers spread over a 10 meter wall.

We’ve created 70 information panels that tell the many stories of the fascinating past of this iconic area.  We have exhibited these panels as temporary exhibitions in 5 local locations.

We’ve done this with no paid staff and kind help from volunteers

We are the Fleet Street Heritage Community Interest Company (CIC), a non-profit organisation created in 2020. We have been able to raise funds for these projects from the City of London CIL Neighbourhood Fund.  It’s amazing what good ideas and a lot of persistence will do.

We need planning permission for our next important project

Our Open House exhibition in September 2023 with a display of 56 of our panels at a site adjoining Fleet Street drew plenty of attention from passers-by who really appreciated the wealth of information presented.  Many signed our petition to make an exhibition like this permanent.

We have a great story to tell, and this is a great way to tell it

The City already has two excellent heritage walls, though both are in somewhat out-of-the-way places.  The marvellous tiled wall in Magpie Alley off Bouverie Street tells the story of the early printing industry in words and pictures.  The Queenhithe mosaic panel tells the story of the City of London from Roman times in an excellent 30meter display.

We are more likely to get permission if there is plenty of support  

Our petition reads

“We urge the City of London Corporation to do everything in its power to establish a permanent, openly accessible exhibition of ceramic tiles incorporating as many as possible of the information panels displayed at the Open House 2023”