Central District Alliance

The parish of St Giles began with the foundation of a leper hospital on a main road out of London. By the 18th century, the area had become a notorious slum and a haunt of thieves. In the 19th century, New Oxford Street, then Charing Cross Road and Shaftesbury Avenue were built for slum clearance. The 2Oth century brought the music industry and now the roads are being transformed again with new public spaces for the Elizabeth Line. A new era has begun.