In a move to enhance accessibility and spectator experience, the prestigious Hurlingham Club in Fulham, West London, has applied to construct a new cricket pavilion to replace its aging and inadequate facilities. The existing pavilion, which is over 30 years old, is no longer deemed “fitting” for the club’s members and visitors, according to the planning report submitted to the Hammersmith and Fulham Council.
The Hurlingham Club, which counts the Prince of Wales among its members, aims to replace the run-down structure with a new, wooden building that “draws on traditional cricket pavilion forms” – featuring a pitched roof, deep verandas, and crafted timber detailing. If approved, the proposed pavilion will measure 165 square metres, nearly double the size of the current facility.
The new pavilion is set to provide level access to a clubroom, a servery, umpire changing rooms, and toilets, addressing the accessibility issues of the existing portable cabins that lack facilities for those with mobility challenges or wheelchair users. In the winter, the space will also be utilised by croquet players, with pitches laid out on the cricket grounds, and will serve as a resting point for members strolling the club’s grounds.
The club, which is recognised as “one of the world’s finest private member clubs,” has been in operation since 1869, offering a range of amenities, including croquet and tennis lawns, botanical gardens, and a stately Georgian Clubhouse. The Grade II-listed Hurlingham House, the main mansion, houses the club’s rooms, restaurant, offices, gym spaces, as well as indoor tennis courts, pickleball and padel courts, and an indoor pool.
Membership at the Hurlingham Club reportedly costs £1,400 per year, and the club maintains a closed membership list, which is reviewed once a year. The proposed pavilion upgrade aims to enhance the club’s facilities and meet the “expectations of the club, its members or visitors” as well as the guidelines set by the English Cricket Board (ECB).