Agnes Riley Gardens

Agnes Riley Gardens were formerly the grounds of Oakfield House, owned by Frederick George Riley in the early C20th. The house was built by the 1860s, and is shown on the OS First Edition Map fronting onto Poynders Road, with gardens to the south. A long ornamental body of water was laid out sometime between the 1860s and 1890s, running from west to east across the centre of what is now the public park, possibly at the southern edge of the original gardens; it is marked with a central fountain on OS Maps (OS 25 ins. London IX.13).

In 1931 Mr Riley offered his property to the LCC as a gift on condition that the 0.81 hectares of garden were made into a public open space and named Agnes Riley Memorial Garden in memory of his wife. At that time the LCC was redeveloping this area, which contained a number of large houses. Mr Riley lived in the house until his death in 1942 although in 1937 he transferred the garden to the LCC. Its layout as a public park began in 1938 but the work was interrupted by WWII when the site was used partly for allotments and partly for military purposes with a War Department Barrage Balloon sited here, although a temporary playground was also in existence. After the war, the residue of the site was transferred into public ownership, including the site of the house, and was laid out as a public park by the LCC at a cost of c£14,000. This included the demolition of the house and conservatory, which had served as a War Department Restaurant until 1953. The ornamental water appears to have been filled in around this time and in the area to the south of this there was a children's playground, paddling pol and games courts, with the rest landscaped with trees, shrubs, lawns and an ornamental pond that remains a feature. In 1952 the word 'Memorial' was dropped from the park's name.

The Friends of Agnes Riley Gardens are a group of local people dedicated to improving the park for the benefit of people living and working in the area. They have undertaken a variety of projects to improve the park and work with Lambeth Council on how the park should be maintained. Recent projects have included re-opening the paddling pool during the summer, and provision of new equipment for the children's playground, following consultation with the One O'Clock Club in the park and a local primary school.  Events are regularly presented by the Friends; in 2019 these included an Autumn Fair, a Hallowe’en pumpkin carving and Treasure Hunt and a Meet Santa event.

The Friends have established a community garden at the north end of the park, adjacent to Poynders Gardens Estate, an LCC estate built in the 1930s. The garden is maintained by a group of local volunteers, with the support of the Friends, who grow produce for themselves and for sharing. Funding has been received over the years for projects in the community garden including for a polytunnel and raised beds. Open sessions are run for the community, which have included training in fruit tree maintenance. Assistance from the Orchard Project and GoodGym has been invaluable support for the garden.