Beautiful Victorian shop sign uncovered in Worthing, revealing origins of the site

The sign for The Lyndhurst Road Stores, run by R.K. Hudson family grocer, caught the eye of signwriter Sue Hall, from Riverbank signs designs.

She said: “The beautiful, very old, handpainted sign has been revealed as the shop is being renovated. It's got to be over 100 years old, it's a great bit of heritage. It is likely it will be painted over.

“I'm interested because I'm a signwriter. It's painted on to concrete, so it can't be removed.”

The growth of East Worthing came after the gasworks opened in Anchor Lane in 1834. Anchor Lane, with The Anchor pub on its corner with High Street, was renamed Lyndhurst Road in 1874 and Worthing Hospital was opened in 1881.

According to British History Online, East Worthing was largely made up of market gardens but these were gradually built on, extending the residential area east from the grand, tree-lined Farncombe Road.

St George's Church was consecrated in 1868 but the area around it was still not fully built up until 1909 and the eastern side of the town remained dominated by market gardens, with their glasshouses and wind pumps, until after the Second World War.

Pictures from local historian Ian Richardson's vast collection show how The Lyndhurst Road Stores looked when it was open. It was replaced by a branch of the grocery chain Worlds Stores.

The original store had huge signs advertising specific products above the door. At one time, Shelvey & Co's Gold Medal soda water was being promoted, and later there was a large Nestle's Milk sign.

Worlds Stores used the space to promote its groceries and provisions. It offered 'great reduction egg prices' and 'great reduction butter prices', as well as the opportunity to join the Worlds Stores Club.

This club model gave shoppers the option to save a small amount each week, to put money by for their large Christmas shop.

Across the road was The Alexandra Hotel, built to accommodate the many tourists who were heading to Worthing from London to enjoy a holiday by the seaside. The opening of the railway in 1845 had made the journey down to the coast so much easier and quicker.

A delve into past planning applications reveals much of the site's history over the past 75 years. In February 1953, an outline plan for the covering in of additional yard space at the rear of 30 Lyndhurst Road was refused.

Five years later, in December 1958, a plan that combined 30 Lyndhurst Road and 40 Selden Road met with approval. This allowed for alterations and additions to form a single-storey warehouse, a new shop window, alterations to the staircase and improvements to the first floor.

An application in April 1969 reveals that 40 Selden Road was a sub post office. The plan to change its use to a printing business was refused.

In March 1978, both shops appear to have been sitting empty. A plan to change the use of the ground floor from a vacant retail shop to 'retail sale and repair of secondhand furniture and upholstery sundries' was approved.

The Easy Chair upholstery centre operated at 30 Lyndhurst Road for many years, before being replaced by The Upholstery Warehouse in 2018, while 40 Selden Road next door was most recently BLUSH colour bar and salon.

The uncovering of the original grocery store sign followed prior approval by Worthing Borough Council for a proposed change of use of the rear ground floor from commercial to one residential flat.

Sussex Urban Quarters first made an application for 30 Lyndhurst Road and 40 Selden Road in December 2025. Permission was granted but a further application with revised plans was made in April 2026, showing minor changes to the internal layout to optimise the residential layout and increase the space in the retained commercial unit at the front.

The council report stated: “The two-storey building is at the end of a terrace within a parade of shops, comprising two commercial units with shopfronts on the ground floor and a three-bedroom flat with roof terrace and external staircase on the first floor.”

Permission was granted on June 3 for conversion of the rear portion of the ground floor to a two-bedroom flat. The commercial unit at the front, with a corner door, will be retained.