Heritage listing
The Enfield Drill Hall is listed in the Enfield local heritage list as a tudor-style building, with a very broad gable with little quirks and volutes broken by two polygonal turrets built in 1901.
Following the formation of the Territorial Force it served as a training establishment, administration centre and social club to generations of Territorial soldiers.
The Enfield Drill Hall was originally built for the Enfield Company of the 1st Volunteer Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment and during the First World War it was the drill station for F Company 7th Battalion Duke of Cambridge’s Own (Middlesex Regiment). During the Second World War it served the B Company 7th Battalion for the Middlesex Regiment.
The Rifle Volunteer Corps was authorised to use the premises provided they supplied their own arms, clothing and equipment. Corps formed in Hampstead, Barnet, Hornsey, Highgate, Tottenham and Enfield to form the 2nd Battalion Middlesex Rifle Volunteers and the 17th (North) Middlesex Rifle Volunteers. To this day, there are still some visible signs of the past dotted around the interior. This rare facility also played its part in promoting good relations with the local community with its large interior, ideal for meetings, exhibitions, trade fairs and social events.
Management Committee
On 1st September 2017, following the retirement of the existing Committee, a new group of volunteers took over the Drill Hall as a Management Committee to run the facilities.
A new website was launched that transformed how bookings were managed and slowly the bookings improved. Today, the Drill Hall has returned to being a thriving badminton venue and hosts a number of additional activities along with Badminton including Pickleball, Archery and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. For more information about who uses the Drill Hall go to Drill Hall Users and Badminton Users.
Since taking on the mantle of management of the Drill Hall the committee, comprising enthusiastic volunteers with a wealth of professional skills amongst them, has been busy improving the facilities. Our maintenance list is slowly reducing and we have plans to make further improvements, budget permitting.
If you’d like to get involved, please contact us at info@enfielddrillhall.club
Look out for updates in our newsletter and also on Facebook.
