Description
Loxford Park was formed upon the grounds of the Loxford Hall Estate, which was purchased in 1899 by Ilford UDC for £11,200 to create a public recreation ground. The early C19th manor house of Loxford Hall stands outside the park in Loxford Lane. The park has various recreational facilities, including playing fields, and a cherry lined avenue leads towards tennis courts and the bowling green. with roses around the border. There is also a sunken rose garden created c.1940 with circular beds and paths, the central area reached by steps with red brick piers each side.
Practical Information
| Site location | Loxford Lane, Ilford, Essex |
|---|---|
| Postcode | IG1 |
| What3Words | ///dangerously.lovely.eaten |
| Type of Site | Public Park |
| Borough | Redbridge |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | Daily 8am-dusk (check site owner for closing time); closed Christmas Day |
| Facilities | Children's play area, tennis courts, basketball, football pitch, outdoor gym. Loxford Park Bowling Club, Cycle Circuit |
| Public Transport | Rail/London Overground/Tube (Hammersmith & City, District): Barking. Bus: 169, 179, 369. |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ443853 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 13 |
| Site Ownership | LB Redbridge |
| Site Management | Vision Redbridge Culture and Leisure Ltd |
| Dates | ?1900; 1930s |
| 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 | Redbridge |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | Yes - Local Importance |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | No |
| Other LA Designation | Local Open Space |
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
Barking Park opened as Barking Town UDC Recreation Ground in April 1898, the first municipal park in the borough. Its original layout included a bandstand, ornamental gardens, bowling green, tennis courts and a large boating lake. The park keeper's lodge at the south-west entrance was built in 1902. Tree planting included alleys of plane and robinia, with the oldest area of landscaping by the lake. In 1919 Barking Park War Memorial was erected and was dedicated in 1922, now commemorating those from Barking who lost their lives in both world wars. Other park facilities added over the years included a children's paddling pool, 18 hole putting green, and an impressive Open Air Swimming Pool or Lido with ornamental cascade (refurbished/restored in 2010). The 1930s light railway re-opened in April 2009.
What is now Little Ilford Park was formerly two recreation grounds, Little Ilford Recreation Ground and Manor Park Recreation Ground. They were divided by Reynolds Avenue, which at that time ran up to Church Road. Land for Little Ilford Recreation Ground was purchased in 1909 and that for Manor Park Recreation Ground in 1912. Both were laid out as relief work under the Unemployed Workmen's Act of 1905. The 1920 OS map shows the two separate grounds divided by Reynolds Avenue but by 1939 the Avenue stopped at its junction with Dore Avenue and the two sides had been united, with a triangular area of gardens bounded by trees in the west, which still remains today. This has a pergola feature with brick piers and numerous rose beds surrounded by a path system with seating, and a number of fine trees.
Quaker Gardens is a former Quaker Burial Ground established in 1672 by the Barking Meeting of the Society of Friends. Among those buried here was prison reformer Elizabeth Fry (d.1845). Her tombstone was moved to Wanstead Quaker Burial Ground where the Barking Meeting transferred in the late C19th. In 1980 the burial ground became a small public garden and all remaining headstones and monuments were then removed.
