We understand the Mrs Fawcett drinking fountain will be reinstated by the Council on or about Monday 6 October 2025. 

The granite drinking fountain on the island north of St. Luke's Church and opposite the main entrance to West Norwood Cemetery was demolished in a car accident on Sunday 13 October 2024. We lobbied for the Council to find a way to fund the repair and return of the fountain, and we are very pleased to report that through working with Councillor Emma Nye and other ward councillors this is about to be achieved.

The drinking fountain is a memorial to local temperance campaigner Amelia Fawcett, who died in 1896 and is buried in the cemetery. The background to the late 1800's temperence movement was both progressive religion and politics, including female suffrage. The inscription states:

This fountain was erected in affectionate memory of Mrs Woodford Fawcett by many neighbours and friends who greatly valued her philanthropic and christian work. Erected by public subscription per G Shrubsall Esq £108.0.0. January 1899

The fountain was broken into its three constituent parts by the accident (grey polished granite plinth, pink granite bowl and pink granite obelisk), and has been kept in safe storage at a Lambeth Highways depot for the past year.

The fountain had not been in working order before the accident, and a modern water fountain is situated a few yards away outside the Library & Picturehouse. 

We will follow up further on our requests to install some protection on the north side of the reinstated​ monument, and on a reconsideration of the road layout for southbound traffic from the Norwood Road/Robson Road traffic lights: two lanes merge into one and there are longstanding problems of speeding traffic on Norwood High Street and the rest of the West Norwood gyratory (Ernest Avenue and Knight’s Hill).

The Emelia Fawcett fountain before the accident on 13 October 2024.