Shottsford is one of the buildings of the Wessex Gardens Estate.
On the south side of Westbourne Park Road, there had been much dereliction around St Stephen’s Gardens, where number 32 was probably the first of many subdivided houses to be acquired by the notorious landlord Peter Rachman. Rachman had an office at the corner of Westbourne Grove and Monmouth Street and acquired several properties nearby.
In 1965 Westminster council bought 108 houses, most of them subdivided or empty, in the hope of preventing further decay.
The houses, west of Porchester Road, were the first of those later known as the Westbourne Gardens estate.
In 1969 the council bought property around St Stephen’s Gardens between Shrewsbury Road and Ledbury Road. The area was rebuilt as the Wessex Gardens Estate, named after Thomas Hardy.
The first of 300 dwellings were ready in 1978.
Shottsford is one of the buildings of the Wessex Gardens Estate.
