Description
Golders Hill Park is on the site of Golders Hill House and grounds, purchased at auction in 1898 by a committee of local residents. It was opened by the LCC in 1899, the first public park in Hendon. The estate was created in the 1760s for Charles Dingley, for whom 'Capability' Brown reputedly landscaped the grounds, which were improved by Humphry Repton for a subsequent owner. In the 1870s Robert Marnock made further alterations to create a 'natural gardening effect' and enlarged the lake. The café stands on the site of the house, demolished in 1941. The old kitchen garden was laid out by the LCC as an 'Old English Garden'. The park has a woodland garden walk leading to tennis courts, the Swan Pond and Water Gardens; animal enclosures, a small zoo and aviary; on the open grass slope are ancient oaks and a C20th bandstand; a number of sculptures.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | Golders Hill House estate; Park is now part of Hampstead Heath |
|---|---|
| Site location | West Heath Road/North End Road, Childs Hill |
| Postcode | NW11 |
| What3Words | ///front.snow.horses |
| Type of Site | Public Park |
| Borough | Barnet |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | summer closing: 9.45pm (check opening/winter) |
| Special Conditions | no cycling, dogs on leads |
| Facilities | Café, toilets, playground, tennis courts, aviary, animal enclosures; putting green (summer weekends/BHolidays); Greenhouse open Sat/Sun 2-4pm |
| Events | Bandstand concerts (Sundays in summer); children's shows; Golders Hill Horticultural Clinic |
| Public Transport | Tube: Golders Green (Northern) then bus. Bus 210, 268. |
| Research Updated | 1 May 2008 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
Golders Hill Park is on the site of the former Golders Hill House and its landscaped grounds, which was purchased at auction for £35,000 in 1898 by a committee of local residents led by Samuel Figgis and Thomas Barratt. The park was opened by the London County Council (LCC) in 1899, to become the first public park in Hendon. The estate had been created in the 1760s for Charles Dingley, for whom 'Capability' Brown reputedly landscaped the grounds. A subsequent owner, John Coore, probably had the landscape improved with advice from Humphry Repton, who refers in his Memoirs to advising Coore on his villa at Hampstead, i.e. Golders Hill. In the 1870s another landscape gardener, Robert Marnock, who had designed Avenue House Grounds (q.v.), made further alterations for Thomas Spencer Wells, a royal surgeon, aiming to create a 'natural gardening effect' and enlarging the lake. Additions were also made to the C18th house in the 1870s, but this was finally demolished in 1941 following damage in World War II; a café now stands on the site.
The old walled kitchen garden survives and was laid out by the LCC as an 'Old English Garden'; it is adjacent to the greenhouse, in front of a stream and duck pond traversed by a rustic stone bridge. The walled garden remains lavishly planted with a great variety of flowering species, including magnolia and gingko trees, around a central circular pond with fountain surrounded by pergolas. The fountain is a bronze sculpture, 'Young Tom and the Water Babies' by Bainbridge Copnall (1950), which has young Tom on a water lily surrounded by five different fish spouting water. It was originally commissioned for the Old Fashioned Garden in Victoria Park, Tower Hamlets (q.v.) through the Constance Fund, which was set up in 1944 to beautify London's parks with sculptural gifts. Sadly Young Tom was vandalised repeatedly in his first home, and following the fountain's removal in 1973 it was reinstalled here in Golders Hill Park where it remains. Another bronze sculpture, 'Golders Hill Girl' by Patricia Finch (1991) was sited across the stream on the grass slope, and near the entrance on North End Road is a work in stone by Mark Batten, 'Diogenist'.
Along the northern perimeter is a woodland garden walk following the course of a stream through rhododendron, gunnera and bamboo to the tennis courts and the larger tree-lined Swan Pond and Water Gardens. The south-eastern side comprises an open grassy slope, with a few ancient oaks and a C20th bandstand of brick with pitched tiled roof. Further downhill are animal enclosures with deer and goats and a small zoo and aviary, which includes flamingos formerly inhabiting the duck pond. Beyond the park boundary is a wilder area of grassland and woodland adjoining the West Heath section of Hampstead Heath.
Golders Hill Park is part of Hampstead Heath (q.v.) and has been managed by the Corporation of London since 1989;
The old walled kitchen garden survives and was laid out by the LCC as an 'Old English Garden'; it is adjacent to the greenhouse, in front of a stream and duck pond traversed by a rustic stone bridge. The walled garden remains lavishly planted with a great variety of flowering species, including magnolia and gingko trees, around a central circular pond with fountain surrounded by pergolas. The fountain is a bronze sculpture, 'Young Tom and the Water Babies' by Bainbridge Copnall (1950), which has young Tom on a water lily surrounded by five different fish spouting water. It was originally commissioned for the Old Fashioned Garden in Victoria Park, Tower Hamlets (q.v.) through the Constance Fund, which was set up in 1944 to beautify London's parks with sculptural gifts. Sadly Young Tom was vandalised repeatedly in his first home, and following the fountain's removal in 1973 it was reinstalled here in Golders Hill Park where it remains. Another bronze sculpture, 'Golders Hill Girl' by Patricia Finch (1991) was sited across the stream on the grass slope, and near the entrance on North End Road is a work in stone by Mark Batten, 'Diogenist'.
Along the northern perimeter is a woodland garden walk following the course of a stream through rhododendron, gunnera and bamboo to the tennis courts and the larger tree-lined Swan Pond and Water Gardens. The south-eastern side comprises an open grassy slope, with a few ancient oaks and a C20th bandstand of brick with pitched tiled roof. Further downhill are animal enclosures with deer and goats and a small zoo and aviary, which includes flamingos formerly inhabiting the duck pond. Beyond the park boundary is a wilder area of grassland and woodland adjoining the West Heath section of Hampstead Heath.
Golders Hill Park is part of Hampstead Heath (q.v.) and has been managed by the Corporation of London since 1989;
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ256870 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | City of London Corporation |
| Site Management | Hampstead Heath Management Committee |
| Dates | 1760s; 1870s; 1898 |
| Designers | C18th: Lancelot 'Capability' Brown, Humphry Repton; 1870s: Robert Marnock;1898/9: LCC |
| 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 | Barnet |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | Not known |
| Nature Conservation Area | Yes - Metropolitan Importance |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | Yes |
| Special Policy Area | Yes - Area of Special Archaeological Significance |
| Other LA Designation | Metropolitan Park |
Gallery
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
* on The National Heritage List for England, Parks & Gardens
The Hill Garden and Pergola were formerly part of the gardens of Hill House, a villa of 1807 that was remodelled in 1896 and rebuilt and enlarged by Sir William Lever, later Viscount Leverhulme, who was owner from 1904-1925. His gardens were laid out in 3 phases, following his purchase of Hill House, renamed The Hill; a second scheme following purchase of Heath Lodge to the north-west in 1911, and a third after he acquired Cedar Lawn in 1914. The first 2 schemes were by Thomas Mawson and included an extensive Pergola and formal gardens. The Hill was acquired by Baron Inverforth in 1926; it was renamed Inverforth House in 1955 when he left it to Manor House Hospital. The property was divided in 1960, the LCC purchasing the western part and north-west part of the pergola, which opened to the public in 1963 as the Hill Garden. In 1991 the part of the pergola owned by the hospital was added to the public gardens. Inverforth House and gardens remain private. The 800ft-long Pergola was restored in 1995 and formal gardens were laid out on former kitchen gardens.
The Hill Garden and Pergola were formerly part of the gardens of Hill House, a villa of 1807 that was remodelled in 1896 and rebuilt and enlarged by Sir William Lever, later Viscount Leverhulme, who was owner from 1904-1925. His gardens were laid out in 3 phases, following his purchase of Hill House, renamed The Hill; a second scheme following purchase of Heath Lodge to the north-west in 1911, and a third after he acquired Cedar Lawn in 1914. The first 2 schemes were by Thomas Mawson and included an extensive Pergola and formal gardens. The Hill was acquired by Baron Inverforth in 1926; it was renamed Inverforth House in 1955 when he left it to Manor House Hospital. The property was divided in 1960, the LCC purchasing the western part and north-west part of the pergola, which opened to the public in 1963 as the Hill Garden. In 1991 the part of the pergola owned by the hospital was added to the public gardens. Inverforth House and gardens remain private. The 800ft-long Pergola was restored in 1995 and formal gardens were laid out on former kitchen gardens.
St Alban and St Michael's Church is an imposing brick building, planned in 1925 but not built until 1932-33, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in free Gothic style. The church hall to the south was built as the first church here in 1909 by Herbert Wills. Golders Green developed rapidly after the Northern Line was extended and the station opened here in 1907, with the line reaching Edgware in 1924; the North Circular Road and Hendon Way were constructed in the 1920s. The church is set within a pleasant garden with lawns, trees and shrubs. Archbishop Desmond Tutu was Curate at St Alban's in the 1960s.
* on The National Heritage List for England, Parks & Gardens
The site was part of the gardens of Hill House, a villa of 1807, remodelled in 1896 and then rebuilt and enlarged by Sir William Lever, later Viscount Leverhulme, who owned the property from 1904-1925. His gardens were laid out in 3 phases as he acquired more land, in 1906 following his purchase of Hill House, renamed The Hill. A second scheme followed his purchase of Heath Lodge to the north-west in 1911, and a third in the 1920s after Cedar Lawn to the south was acquired. The first two schemes were by Thomas Mawson and included an extensive Pergola and formal gardens. Baron Inverforth acquired The Hill in 1926; it was renamed Inverforth House in 1955 when he left it to Manor House Hospital. The property was divided in 1960 and part of the Pergola and Hill Garden opened to the public in 1963. Inverforth House and gardens were sold to developers in the 1990s for private residences. Inverforth House is fronted on the west and south-west by a broad terrace with steps leading to a formal garden with paved rectangular pond and fountain, surrounded by classical urns and pedestals. The garden is visible from The Hill Garden.
The site was part of the gardens of Hill House, a villa of 1807, remodelled in 1896 and then rebuilt and enlarged by Sir William Lever, later Viscount Leverhulme, who owned the property from 1904-1925. His gardens were laid out in 3 phases as he acquired more land, in 1906 following his purchase of Hill House, renamed The Hill. A second scheme followed his purchase of Heath Lodge to the north-west in 1911, and a third in the 1920s after Cedar Lawn to the south was acquired. The first two schemes were by Thomas Mawson and included an extensive Pergola and formal gardens. Baron Inverforth acquired The Hill in 1926; it was renamed Inverforth House in 1955 when he left it to Manor House Hospital. The property was divided in 1960 and part of the Pergola and Hill Garden opened to the public in 1963. Inverforth House and gardens were sold to developers in the 1990s for private residences. Inverforth House is fronted on the west and south-west by a broad terrace with steps leading to a formal garden with paved rectangular pond and fountain, surrounded by classical urns and pedestals. The garden is visible from The Hill Garden.
