Shirley is an area of south London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon. It lies north of Spring Park and Addington, east of Addiscombe, south of Monks Orchard and west of West Wickham, and 10 miles south-southeast of Charing Cross. Prior to the creation of Greater London in 1965, Shirley was in the administrative county of Surrey.

The Shirley area is split into Shirley proper (centred on Wickham Road), Shirley Oaks (to the north) and Upper Shirley (to the west); the suburbs of Monks Orchard and Spring Park are sometimes also considered to be sub-districts of Shirley.

The name Shirley, first recorded in 1314, is thought to mean "shire clearing", referring to its position adjacent to the traditional Kent-Surrey border, though it may instead mean "bright clearing". It was long a small hamlet, with a large mansion (Shirley House) being built here in 1721; this was purchased by the businessman and member of parliament, John Maberley, in the mid-1800s. Around this period the population was growing, with more housing being built. St John's Church was built in 1856 to serve the needs of the growing community, replacing a smaller chapel dating from 1835.

Shirley House was converted into the Shirley Park Hotel in 1912. In the 1930s. House building in the area rapidly expanded, largely consisting of suburban-style semi-detached houses, with the Monks Orchard estate also being built in this period. However some land escaped the building boom; Shirley Park Hotel was bought by the Whitgift Foundation in 1965 to become Trinity School in a new building constructed on the site.

Neighbouring the Trinity School grounds is Shirley Park Golf Course. To the south of Shirley are large areas of woodland, including Addington Hills and Threehalfpenny Wood. Parks and open spaces are dotted across the area, including Miller's Pond in Spring Park. Central Shirley (along Wickham Road) contains a library, several shops and restaurants and two pubs - The Crown and the Shirley Inn.

Shirley Oaks is situated north of central Shirley, abutting Monks Orchard. The land here was traditionally the property of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The area gets its name from Oaks Farm, which lay here circa 1800. The area began to be developed in the early 20th century, with the opening of the Shirley Oaks Children's Home in 1903. Following the closure of the Home in 1982, the site was demolished and replaced with modern housing by Heron Homes. Part of the site was set aside for Shirley Oaks Hospital, a private healthcare centre which opened in 1986.

The Shirley Oaks Children's Home opened in 1903 and was run by the London Borough of Lambeth until its closure in 1982. It was the largest in the country. The children's home consisted of 38 cottages on an 80 acres (32 ha) site; it contained its own school. In 2014 allegations of abuse emerged, and the Shirley Oaks Survivors Association (SOSA) was set up. Between then and 2020, 1,760 people have described suffering sexual, physical and racial abuse while at the home. Children were "drugged, tortured and sexually assaulted." The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse "heard that despite widespread mistreatment of children, the authority (Lambeth Council) failed to investigate any allegations at the time."

The Metropolitan Police inquiry, Operation Midland, which examined all the borough's children's homes, concluded at least 35 men and women had abused children over a 20-year period. SOSA believes that over a 60-year period, over 120 abusers were involved.