Getting to Trinity Laban Conservatoire: the campuses, the stations and a smooth arrival

Formed in 2005 from the merger of Trinity College of Music (founded 1872) and the Laban Dance Centre, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance is a world-leading conservatoire of around 1,200 students, training across classical music, jazz, musical theatre, contemporary dance, choreography and dance science. Its setting is unique among London's institutions: music in a Wren-era building within the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site, and dance in an award-winning building in Deptford that sparked a wave of regeneration. For students arriving for the first time and the families helping them settle, knowing which site to head for is the key — and this guide covers exactly that.

01 / LOCATIONWhere exactly is Trinity Laban?

Trinity Laban has two principal homes in south-east London. Music is at King Charles Court, Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich, London SE10 9JF — part of the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site, beside the Cutty Sark and the river. Dance is at the Laban Building, Creekside, Deptford, London SE8 3DZ — a RIBA Stirling Prize-winning building a mile to the west. Neither offers general parking (disabled bays aside), so for arrivals a clean drop-off at the right entrance is the sensible approach.

02 / CAMPUSESGreenwich, Deptford and New Cross

Trinity Laban's sites are genuinely different places, so it pays to know which is which:

• King Charles Court, Greenwich (SE10) — the Faculty of Music, in a historic Old Royal Naval College building with recital rooms whose core incorporates Tudor-palace masonry.
• Laban Building, Deptford (SE8) — the Faculty of Dance, with thirteen professional dance studios, a 300-seat theatre and landscaped gardens, on Creekside.
• Laurie Grove, New Cross (SE14) — additional studios used for some activity.

The conservatoire also runs Blackheath Halls nearby. Confusing Greenwich and Deptford with an instrument or luggage in tow is no fun — so check your programme and timetable, and tell us the site when you book.

03 / STATIONSNearest stations and getting around

Both sites are well served, mostly by the DLR and national rail:

• King Charles Court (Greenwich): Cutty Sark DLR is the closest, with Greenwich (DLR and national rail) nearby — and trains from Cannon Street reach Greenwich in around 10 to 12 minutes.
• Laban Building (Deptford): Deptford (national rail) is about a ten-minute walk, with Deptford Bridge DLR also close.
• The DLR links to the Underground at Bank, Canary Wharf (Jubilee line), Shadwell and Stratford, and the Thames Clipper river bus serves Greenwich Pier.

For getting around day to day, the DLR and riverboats are a pleasure. The catch is specific to a conservatoire: easy with a backpack, far harder carrying an instrument or dance kit and a term's luggage with a change onto the DLR.

04 / AIRPORTSAirport transfer times to Trinity Laban

Trinity Laban's south-east position is a real advantage for one airport in particular. The board below gives realistic door-to-door driving times to the Greenwich music site for a pre-booked private hire car (Deptford is a little to the west). Treat them as a planning guide; the Blackwall Tunnel approaches have their own ideas.

From London City

London City Airport is the easy one — only about five miles away, just across the river, so for students flying via LCY a transfer to Greenwich or Deptford is short and simple. A quick London City airport transfer by car is simpler than the DLR-and-change route, straight to the right site.

From the other airports

Gatwick sits to the south, with Heathrow the long haul from the far west and Luton and Stansted to the north. From each, the rail route ends in a DLR or train ride out to Greenwich or Deptford with bags; for a family or anyone with an instrument, one car and one fixed price is the gentler option.

Right by London City Airport — and for the longer runs, the door-to-door car spares you the DLR with a cello or a kit bag.

05 / MOVE-IN DAYArriving with instruments and luggage

Move-in day at Trinity Laban means getting to the right one of two riverside sites — and, for musicians, protecting an instrument along the way. A pre-booked private hire transfer handles it cleanly: a car sized to the luggage and the instrument or dance kit, a driver who knows whether you're heading to King Charles Court in Greenwich or the Laban Building in Deptford, and a drop-off at the right entrance rather than a haul from the DLR. With neither site offering general parking, a drop-and-go beats trying to park — choose an MPV if the family is helping and everyone arrives together for one fixed fare.

06 / VISITSAuditions, open days and performances

For a conservatoire, audition day is the big one — a timed, high-stakes occasion where arriving calm and unflustered genuinely matters, often with an instrument in hand. Add open days, the many performances in the Laban Theatre and at Blackheath Halls, and graduation, and families travel to south-east London all year, frequently from outside the city. A pre-booked car means everyone arrives together at the right site, with no circling and no rush-hour stress on a day when focus counts.

07 / NEARBYWhat's around Trinity Laban

The Greenwich and Deptford sites sit among some of London's most characterful surroundings:

• The Old Royal Naval College & the Cutty Sark — the World Heritage waterfront right by the music school.
• The National Maritime Museum & Royal Observatory — maritime Greenwich and the Prime Meridian close by.
• Greenwich Market & the river — the covered market and Thames path a short walk away.
• Deptford & Creekside — the creative, regenerating heart of the dance school's neighbourhood.

08 / FAQFrequently asked questions