West Kensington Post Office And Delivery Office

West Kensington Post Office and Delivery Office is a building dating from 1903-4, designed by the Office of Works under the direction of (Sir) Henry Tanner. It is constructed of orange-red brick with Portland-stone dressings and represents a picturesque grouping on an irregular corner site, employing a classical style sometimes referred to as ‘Wrenaissance’.

The building comprises a long Delivery Office shed with offices at its short north end, and a flat-roofed, single-storey Post Office block attached to the east, which incorporates a basement. The north elevation, two storeys in height, has three bays and is symmetrical around a central carriage arch. A five-light bowed oriel window is positioned above the arch. The east front of the Post Office appears loosely eight bays wide, with two projections forming a central entrance to the public hall. This entrance is flanked by paired angle pilasters.

A polygonal projection extends eastwards from the south part of the Delivery Office, providing a secondary entrance and pedimented windows. Above this projection are twin pedimented half dormers flanking a tall ornamental chimney with pilasters and a cornice. A canted bay extends from the south end of the Delivery Office shed towards the road, with two further bays to the south featuring a lower roofline.

The West Kensington Post Office and Delivery Office were constructed to serve the former Post Office Savings Bank Headquarters (Blythe House) and, upon opening, handled approximately 100,000 letters daily. The building provides a good example of its type and possesses significant group value.