London’s secret gardens

Charles Dickens once wrote that ‘the parks be the lungs of London’, highlighting how the great Royal Parks such as Hyde Park, Richmond and Greenwich not only provide Londoners with an escape to cleaner climes, but also combat the pollution created by such a buzzing and frantic metropolis.

The environmental benefit of the capital’s 11,000-plus outdoor green spaces has been estimated at £8 billion over the next 50 years – that’s how much they will save Londoners thanks to their ability to capture carbon dioxide, counter air pollutants and prevent flooding.

But just as essential to those ecological benefits are London’s small parks, churchyards, plazas and the various hidden away public gardens – many of which are undergoing major improvements to make them greener, cleaner and more engaging for locals and tourists alike.

Urban Greening

While the City of London is not exactly famed for its green spaces, there are some vibrant, biodiverse hidden gems nestled within the concrete jungle. The transformation of Finsbury Circus Gardens, bang in the city centre will see the Grade II listed site hosting new areas of planting and improvements to habitats for birds, bees and bats by the end of 2024.

London park upgrades include new outdoor gyms at Wood Crescent – by the BBC Television Centre at Shepherd’s Bush – at Beckenham Place Park, south London and at The Parks in Bracknell among others. These facilities will add to 300-plus outdoor gyms around London, providing park goers with an opportunity to exercise both body and mind. 

The construction of new playgrounds and gyms are in progress across the capital, too – including ones at Crystal Palace Park, Wandsworth Park and Avenue Park, Hounslow. The greening of London’s streets, buildings and other public spaces continues – as part of The London Plan – with roofs and walls covered in plants, street trees planted and small pocket parks created between city buildings. The aim is to increase the capital’s tree canopy cover and for half of London to be truly green by 2050.

1 Gladstone Park

This green space has an outdoor gym, tennis courts, multi-sport facilities, and pitches for Gaelic football and rugby. Local group, Friends of Gladstone Park, organise wildlife walks, gardening and litter picking activities.

Location Brent, NW2 6RW
Website brent.gov.uk

2 Omved Gardens

Once a tarmac hilltop, Highgate’s lush green escape across from Waterlow Park, now hosting mindfulness workshops, growing classes, sustainable supper clubs and fostering a connection between humans and nature.

Location 1 Townsend Yard, N6 5JF
Website omvedgardens.com 

3 Prospect Park Playground

Designed by LDA Design, parents and carers will enjoy the stunning setting located next to Gehry Partners’ beautiful Prospect Place with the iconic Power Station as a backdrop, just as much as the little ones. Open daily (8am to 8pm), this has to be one of the bright, colourful children’s playground in London.

Location Battersea Power Station, SW11 8BN
Website @batterseapwrstn

4 Holland Park

Surrounded by the beautiful formal gardens and wilded woodlands, the canopied open-air auditorium is the perfect place to enjoy opera in the heart of this major London Park, search operahollandpark.com to find out more. Other park facilities include tennis, football, netball, golf and cricket practice nets. You can try a tours and events session from 6th September including a Blue Badge guided tour: Statues, sculptures and art in the park, Autumn bat walk (free to attend, but bookings essential) or even a Herbal medicine walk.

Location Ilchester Place, W8 6LU
Website rbkc.gov.uk

5 Red Cross Garden

This award-winning open space was renovated and restored back to its original Victorian layout in 2005. Designed by social reformer Octavia Hill, one of the three founders of The National Trust, it features historic tours, after-school clubs, poetry readings and events, supported by dedicated volunteers. The charity Bankside Open Spaces Trust renovated the gardens and are always on the lookout for volunteers.

Location 50 Redcross Way, SE1 1HA
Website bost.org.uk