Park of the week

34. Edgwarebury Park

Because Jack makes a fuss if we visit a park more than once, we’re going further and further away from home in search of open spaces. That said, Edgwarebury Park is one that’s close to home. We accidentally visited it twice, the second time coming after I noticed it on a map and wondered why we hadn’t been before. Jack pointed out at top volume that we had. That’s what happens when I don’t read my parks list first. For everyone else, it’s worth more than one visit. 

It’s one of Barnet’s Premier Parks and a Site of Local Importance for Nature Conservation – there are old oak and ash trees, and lots of birds. It was once part of the manor of Earlsbury, first mentioned in 1216. In the later Middle Ages it was owned by All Souls College, Oxford, and you can still see evidence of the older landscape of fields and woodland, such as old hedgerows. The local authority bought part of the land in 1929, and the rest in 1932, when the park opened. In the 1990s Watling Chase Community Forest (an area of 72 square miles located in north London and south Hertfordshire around Potters Bar, Radlett, Borehamwood and Barnet) planted a new block of woodland in the north east corner. 

So often during our walks we find streams and brooks, criss-crossing like interacting lines on the Underground map, all eventually finding their way to the Thames. I’ve spent much time looking at river maps – and that’s before you look for the hidden or lost ones. Edgwarebury Park’s no exception to this. To the south, the land slopes towards Edgwarebury Brook, a tributary of Deans Brook, which is a tributary of the Silk Stream, which is a tributary of the River Brent, which is a tributary of the River Thames. 

The park has formal and informal gardens. One garden has scented plants with rosemary, catmint and other aromatic species, designed for partially sighted visitors (and cats, I suppose). There’s also a rose garden, playground, tennis and multi-sports courts, football and cricket pitches and an outdoor gym. There are hard and soft paths and plenty of places to sit.
There is access from Edgware Way and Edgwarebury Lane. There’s no car park but it’s straightforward to find a space on nearby streets. 

Judith Field

Edgwarebury Park, Edgwarebury Lane, HA8 8QP