Description
Oakfield was built in 1721, one of several C18th houses that back onto Dulwich Common, once a royal hunting ground used by Charles I and his courtiers. After the common was enclosed in 1805 further houses were built here. This is the only one that appears to have retained some of the C18th landscape features, in the form of a serpentine-shaped lake and several ruins. An C18th outbuilding in the north-west corner of No. 41 is now a separate dwelling.
Practical Information
| Site location | College Road/Dulwich Common |
|---|---|
| Postcode | SE21 |
| What3Words | ///water.mole.backup |
| Type of Site | Garden Feature Remnants |
| Borough | Southwark |
| Open to Public | No |
| Opening Times | private/not visible |
| Public Transport | Rail: West Dulwich. Bus: P4 |
| Research Updated | 1 March 2003 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ332732 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | private |
| Dates | 1721 |
| Listed Structures | LBII: Oakfield; Outbuilding north-west of No. 41 |
| 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 | Southwark |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | Dulwich Village |
| Tree Preservation Order | Not known |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | No |
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
The site is part of the extensive Dulwich Estate. The Mill Pond stands near a busy road intersection in a small plot of land surrounded by railings and abuts the playing fields of Dulwich College. Pond Cottages, a row of picturesque C18th weather-boarded timber houses, were probably built to serve the tile kiln that was in operation here until the late C18th. Bricks and roof tiles were made in the C17th and C18th, the clay pit that provided the raw material later filled with water to become the pond. It is one of the few remaining traces of the River Effra stream system in Southwark. It was named after a windmill that had stood on the other side of College Road, demolished by the College in 1814/15. South of the Mill Pond and Pond Cottages is a small private garden with a catalpa planted in memory of George Clout (d.1962), the Estates Bailiff to the Dulwich College Estates from 1914-1957. The garden has railings to College Road and is laid out with lawn, hedges.
Dulwich College arose out Alleyn's College of God's Gift founded in 1619 by theatre impresario Edward Alleyn. The school moved to the current site in 1870 when the main building, originally called New College, was built, designed in Italianate style by Charles Barry Jnr, son of the architect of the Houses of Parliament. The site was formerly part of Dulwich Common. Numerous new school buildings have been added since that time. A small strip of land of 0.5 hectares in front of Dulwich College remains commonland.
* on The National Heritage List for England, Parks & Gardens
Belair Park is a typical late C18th 'pocket estate' with a mansion, originally called College Place, a home farm and landscaped grounds, including a water feature created from the River Effra. Renamed Belair in c.1829, the estate remained in private ownership until 1938. In WWII house and grounds were requisitioned for wartime use, the grounds cultivated as allotments. After the war the estate was acquired by the Metropolitan Borough of Southwark as a quasi-country club facility accessible to Southwark residents, and the house was restored. When the new Borough of Southwark was created in 1965, controlled use of Belair ceased and it was opened as a public park. The mansion was let and has been run as a restaurant in recent years.
Belair Park is a typical late C18th 'pocket estate' with a mansion, originally called College Place, a home farm and landscaped grounds, including a water feature created from the River Effra. Renamed Belair in c.1829, the estate remained in private ownership until 1938. In WWII house and grounds were requisitioned for wartime use, the grounds cultivated as allotments. After the war the estate was acquired by the Metropolitan Borough of Southwark as a quasi-country club facility accessible to Southwark residents, and the house was restored. When the new Borough of Southwark was created in 1965, controlled use of Belair ceased and it was opened as a public park. The mansion was let and has been run as a restaurant in recent years.
