The Alleyway Behind Wagamama Is Now Chandlers Walk - a New Pedestrian Link Through Sevenoaks Town Centre

A new pedestrian route through Sevenoaks town centre is now open to the public. Chandlers Walk runs from the High Street, past Wagamama, through to the cultural quarter on Suffolk Way - home to the library, museum and art gallery - and on to Webbs Alley, which links to Knole. Sevenoaks Town Council says it campaigned for the link as part of its Neighbourhood Development Plan's Cultural Strategy.

Before redevelopment, the route was what the Town Council describes as "an uninviting alleyway enclosed between two high brick walls" running between Wagamama and the old Tesco building. It's now a wide, landscaped walkway with new paving, lighting and planting, built as part of the Chandlers Place development at 136 High Street, which this site covered as it neared completion earlier this month.

Chandlers Place and Chandlers Walk both take their name from the site's own history. It was previously occupied by J. S. Charlton Ltd, a corn chandler, and the gap between the Charlton shop and Suffolk Place had been known locally as Charlton's Yard since the mid-1920s. When developer Purelake redeveloped the site, it chose the name Chandlers Place to preserve that heritage.

The Mayor of Sevenoaks, Cllr Victoria Granville, said: "We are so pleased to see this much-anticipated walkway now open to the public. Chandlers Walk brings different parts of the town together, providing a better link between key cultural venues and the High Street. This year, we are focusing on celebrating culture as central to community life in Sevenoaks, so improving access to cultural facilities is a welcome development. Many thanks to the Sevenoaks Town Council team for advocating for this important town centre link through the Cultural Strategy and to Purelake for delivering this excellent walkway."

More on the wider Chandlers Place development, including its confirmed Tesco and Oliver Bonas units. Source: Sevenoaks Town Council.