Goodenough College

The college was incorporated in 1930 by a group of prominent Londoners, including the chairman of Barclays Bank and founder of Barclays Bank DCO (Dominion, Colonial and Overseas) Frederick Craufurd Goodenough. Goodenough and his friends wanted to provide able young men coming to London from the dominions and colonies, future leaders of what was then a large empire, with a collegiate life along Oxbridge lines in London. The college was a moot hall and at the same time a place where they would form lasting friendships in tolerance and understanding.

The search for a site for the new college was centred on Bloomsbury, to which the University of London was preparing a move from South Kensington. An ideal site for sale freehold was found between Guilford Street and Mecklenburgh Square, and the College bought it in 1930.

Plans were to design and build a new college, but this would take time which the governors did not want to waste. In the traditional manner of Bloomsbury's philanthropic institutions, they made a start in a small way in some of the roomy old houses on the site. London House first opened its doors in October 1931, in Nos. 4–7 Caroline Place (now Mecklenburgh Place) on the west side of the site. The house was soon full, with a long waiting list, and by the start of World War II occupied all the Caroline Place houses.

A new London House for 300 single students was built between 1935 and 1963 to the designs of the architect Sir Herbert Baker, his partner Alexander T. Scott, and their successor Vernon Helbing. It was completed in three stages:

Stage 1 (1935–37). The south-east corner including the Great Hall, Charles Parsons Library, common-rooms and the Guilford Street entrance. This was the only part to be completed in Sir Herbert Baker's lifetime.

Stage 2 (1948–53). The rest of the south wing, the west wing and the north-west corner. Alexander Scott continued in Baker's style, with some simplification of detail.

Stage 3 (1961–63). The north wing, including the north-east corner. It was built to a lower cost than the other stages, for example, no flint-work. At the same time, architect Vernon Helbing created the college chapel out of former offices.

In the 1940s, at the instigation of the Chairman of the College Governors, Sir William Goodenough, the Lord Mayor of London launched a Thanksgiving Fund, to raise money in the U.K. and do something to thank the people of the Commonwealth and the United States for their generous gifts, especially of food parcels, during and after World War II. The money raised was used to build William Goodenough House for women and married students from those countries, replacing houses destroyed or badly damaged in the war on the north east of the Square. At the same time the bombed houses in adjacent Heathcote Street were rebuilt as an annexe, and the House was completed in 1957. Later wings, Julian Crossley Court (1974) and Ashley Ponsonby Court (1991) brought the capacity of the House up to 120 rooms for single students and 60 flats for married couples and families.

The two parallel institutions developed their own characters over time – the quiet surroundings of the WGH common rooms appealed to some LH residents, and various "Willie G" girls preferred the noisier atmosphere of the London House bar. Traditions developed, such as the LH rugby team singing lullabies to the inhabitants of WGH after the annual sports dinner, and many LH-WGH romances flourished, and in some cases resulted in marriage and even children. The two houses, London House and William Goodenough House eventually became mixed in 1991.

Nos. 22–25 Mecklenburgh Square survived the war and were used as a nurses’ home until 1989 when they were handed back in a very dilapidated state. At first, the houses were repaired and used as inexpensive accommodation for short-stay visitors, mostly returning alumni and other academics in London to attend conferences and seminars. By 1997, however, it was apparent that the building required modernization if they were to meet the standards that would be required in the 21st century.

The houses were closed, and plans made to add No. 21 and renovate and upgrade at a cost of £3.5 million. There were delays because the Georgian houses are listed buildings in a conservation area, and the work required the approval of both English Heritage and the London Borough of Camden planning department. Eventually, the plans were passed, and the Goodenough Club opened its doors in April 2001. The hotel is open to academic and professional visitors as well as conference delegates from around the world, and was renamed as The Goodenough on Mecklenburgh Square in 2018.[1]

As the name of the college and of the Director's equivalent position has changed over time, the title of each appointee is given.

Up until the 1970s, London House was a single-sex men-only building. The position of London House warden was abolished in 2008.

From the instigation of William Goodenough House in 1950, it was run by a separate warden. Up until the 1970s, William Goodenough House was a single-sex women-only building, while London House was a men-only building. The position of William Goodenough House warden was abolished in 2007.