Cobdown House sits behind the London City Lioness’ practice grounds in Ditton, Kent and became Advo’s Head office from September 2023.
Cobdown House was built, we believe, in 1865, as a private residence and looked a bit different back then. Just to put its age into perspective in 1865, Queen Victoria was on the throne and her husband, Prince Albert had died just four years previously.
The first readily available depiction of the property is on the 1869 six-inch OS map. It is likely that the property was constructed for Robert Tassell, J.P., (1794 – 1874) who is described as being ‘of Cob Down’. Cobdown House was put up for auction in 1898 and was described as a ‘comfortable residence of moderate size’, ‘substantially erected by the late owner for his own occupation’.
The picture above is from 1898, the earliest depiction of the house. Robert Tassell’s portrait hangs in the Maidstone Museum. The House later came under the ownership of Reeds, a local Kent paper manufacturer, who owned a large part of the land at the current site and across the other side of the M20 motorway. It was later owned by an organisation born out of the Reed staff social club & used over the years as a private residence, a hostel, offices, a training college, and of latterly Advo.
The site today encompasses much of the previous grounds of the house in addition to modern offices added to the rear in the 1970s and the original Gate House.
The site also includes a lovely bit of extra history, a Sauna donated by the Finish Government. 75 years ago, the Finish Olympic team brought a prefab sauna to London for their athletes for the 1948 London Olympics. In 1954 it was donated to Reed paper Mills for its workers to enjoy, & here it remains. It’s still in remarkably good condition inside.
The 1948 Olympic Sauna in 1954 and present day
Cobdown House was again put up for auction in 1924 (picture below) and by 1933, the property had been enlarged to the rear. By 1945 the sports grounds to the southeast had been extended, with new tennis courts
Photograph from 1924 Estate Agent catalogue.
Planning applications from 1947 make reference to timber huts within the grounds of Cobdown House specifically used for sleeping accommodation. This relates to the house’s use as a hostel during this period, though the exact date the hostel was established is unknown. Further additions and dormitories were added during the 1950s (Pictures below from 1950s). It is also known that a planning application from 1964 was approved for the change of use from a student hostel.
Depictions of Cobdown House during 1950s
In 1979 construction of new single-storey office accommodation commenced which substantially increased the scope of Cobdown House. This was followed in 1993 when the site was further redeveloped, followed by the construction of a two-storey extension to the rear of the main building in 2006. An additional single-storey extension in 2012 giving the current footprint of the site.
In 2024 work commenced updating the rear annexes with a modern infrastructure allowing Advo to move staff onto the site and use as it’s Head Offices.
In 2025 renovation work started on the main house which after decades of neglect was in a sorry state. much of the outside has been updated with new modern windows, in the original style, replacing the old rotten frames. Work inside the house will focus on creating a ‘backbone’ to the house to last the next 100 years. New wiring, plumbing, heating and temperature control systems and modern data infrastructure will be first to be upgraded and introduced followed by a complete facelift everywhere keeping as true as possible to original, retaining any original features that have survived over the year. The work, currently expected to finish at the end of 2025, will create a new modern venue for Kent, allowing new offices for Advo staff, long term tenants, and a business hub for Kent Businesses and an events centre, not just for businesses but the local community too.
