Description
Chaldon Way Gardens is a small ornamental garden opposite Coulsdon Memorial Ground. The site was given for a public garden to Coulsdon UDC in the 1930s by Fairdean Heights Ltd, the developer of the surrounding housing. An agreement was drawn up that enabled the Council to use 'such earth, turf, sub-soil, flowers and shrubs as can be removed from the Company's Fairdean Heights Estate'. As a result an ornamental garden was laid out with lawns, shrub beds and annual bedding displays, and with a a small shelter at one end.
Practical Information
| Site location | Marlpit Lane/Chaldon Way, Coulsdon |
|---|---|
| Postcode | CR5 2HE |
| What3Words | ///swift.alien.levels |
| Type of Site | Public Gardens |
| Borough | Croydon |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | 8am Mon-Fri/9am weekends - dusk |
| Public Transport | Bus |
| Research Updated | 1 December 2008 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
Chaldon Way Gardens is a small ornamental garden on a triangular site adjacent to Coulsdon Memorial Ground (q.v.). The land was given to Coulsdon Urban District Council by the developer Fairdean Heights Ltd, who built the surrounding houses in the 1930s. It was agreed that 'The Company will allow the Council, at its own cost, to collect and use free of charge for the purpose of the original layout of the land as a public open garden, such earth, turf, sub-soil, flowers and shrubs as can be removed from the Company's Fairdean Heights Estate.' As a result of this agreement an ornamental garden was constructed with lawns, shrub beds and annual bedding displays. These are still in evidence today along with a a small shelter at one end of the garden, which was part of the original design.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ301587 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 0.2 |
| Site Ownership | LB Croydon |
| Site Management | Parks and Open Spaces |
| Dates | c1930 |
| Designers | Coulsdon Urban District Council |
| On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens | No |
| Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965 | No |
| Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931 | No |
| Local Authority | Croydon |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | No |
| Other LA Designation | Local Open Land |
Please note the Inventory and its content are provided for your general information only and are subject to change. It is your responsibility to check the accuracy.
Nearby parks and gardens
Coulsdon Memorial Ground was opened in 1921 as a public recreation ground, dedicated to Coulsdon men who fell in WWI. The war memorial is situated at the top of the site and takes the form of a portico with an inscription on the rear wall. A plaque was later added to commemorate those who died in WWII. The land had originally been part of Edmund Byron's Coulsdon Estate and was purchased by Coulsdon and Purley UDC in 1920, partly by public subscription. By 1940 recreational facilities included tennis courts, bowling green, putting green and toilets.
Bradmore Green is the remnant of the village green and pond of the old village of Coulsdon, once part of the manorial lands held by the Abbey of Chertsey until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the C16th. The manorial rights passed to the King and then to various famous families until 1783. The Byron family then held the land until 1921, when it passed to Purley and Coulsdon UDC. It was from this period that the area began to change dramatically, with the arrival of the the railway at the bottom of Marlpit Lane accelerating development.
Farthing Downs is a chalk downland ridge with fine views, popular with the public for well over 100 years although it has a much longer history dating back to the Stone Age. There is evidence of early cultivation by Celtic farmers in the Iron Age, and Saxon burial sites have been found. The tree belt between Farthing Downs and the lower fields was an ancient hedgerow. The nearby New Hill was purchased to protect the downs' immediate surroundings, and is more wooded. Farthing Downs is within the West Wickham and Coulsdon Commons group of sites managed by the Corporation of London.