The French Institute is a Grade II listed building in the Kensington and Chelsea local planning authority area, England. First listed on 16 January 1981. Institute. 10 related planning applications.

The French Institute

WRENN ID
cold-grate-indigo
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Kensington and Chelsea
Constituency
Kensington and Bayswater MP: Joe Powell (Lab)
Country
England
Date first listed
16 January 1981
Type
Institute
Address
The French Institute, Queensberry Place Sw7
OS grid reference
TQ 266 788
Coordinates
51.49468, -0.17696
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: sale history · EPC · related consents · flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The French Institute is an institute built in 1937 by A J Thomas, with reception suites designed by Patrice Bonnet in 1939. It is located on a corner site and constructed of red brick with some cream faience. The building has two storeys and a basement, featuring six bays facing Queensberry Place. The first floor has coupled pointed windows with recessed brick panels above, while the ground floor windows are square-headed, separated by patterned faience piers. The entrance is located on the return to Queensberry Way, which includes a canopied entrance and a stepped oriel above. The building also has faience window tracery and a two-storey wing of six bays to the right. Notable interior features include a staircase and library that have survived.

Local climate

The French Institute sits in one of the driest parts of the UK, with an average of 700 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 93% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 94% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 34 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 51% of listed buildings. Of these, 15 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

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  • Full EPC report — heating system, energy costs, size, glazing, construction etc.
  • Sale history — 1 transaction since 2018
  • Related listed building consents — 10 applications
  • Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
  • Flood risk assessment
  • Radon risk assessment
  • Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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