Description
Putney Park Lane may be a remnant of a medieval lane that once provided access to The Pleasance, the site of the Archbishop of Canterbury's Putney Park hunting lodge. The lane was laid out by the early C18th as a formal tree-lined drive for a house built on the site of the former hunting lodge and later became the access to a number of grand houses built here including Granard House, Putney Park House and Dover House. The latter's early C18th entrance lodge remains, now known as Regency Lodge. To the south of the lane at the junction of Putney Park Lane and Putney Heath is South Lodge. Putney Park Lane is now maintained as public open space by LB Wandsworth.
Practical Information
| Site location | Putney Park Lane, between Upper Richmond Road and Putney Heath |
|---|---|
| Postcode | SW15 |
| What3Words | ///coast.sunk.orders |
| Type of Site | Public Open Land |
| Borough | Wandsworth |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | unrestricted |
| Public Transport | Bus: 74, 85, 170, 337, 424 |
| Research Updated | 1 May 2005 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
Towards the north Putney Park Lane runs alongside The Pleasance Open Space, part of Dover Road Estate (q.v.). South of this to the east is St Margaret's Church with a small church garden, built in the mid C19th as a Baptist Chapel. It became a C of E church in c.1912 when it was altered by A G Humphrey, the building further altered in 1925 by Forsyth and Maule.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ228740 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 0.9 |
| Site Ownership | LB Wandsworth |
| Site Management | Parks Service |
| Dates | C18th on |
| Listed Structures | LBII: Regency Lodge (formerly to Dover House), gates, piers and railings |
| 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 | Wandsworth |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | Dover House Estate and Westmead |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | Yes - Local Importance |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | Yes - Archaeological Priority Area |
| Other LA Designation | Linear Open Space |
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
Dover House Road Estate is one of a number of important LCC cottage estates inspired by the Garden City movement and the pioneering town planning of Barry Parker and Raymond Unwin. The land was previously the estates of two large houses, Dover House and Putney Park House, which were purchased by the LCC soon after WWI. Houses on Dover House Road Estate were designed in groups that overlooked or had access to open space, and the estate was laid out with cul de sacs, generous verges, street trees and front privet hedging, as well as communal green spaces, the largest of which is The Pleasance Open Space, once a medieval green. Allotments were provided in three backland areas, one of which was lost to development in the 1970s, but the remaining two allotments are managed by the Roehampton Garden Society. As a result of demand for allotments, many of the original plots have been divided and the Society now administers in excess of 200 plots across the two sites.
Barnes Common was used jointly by the people of Barnes and Putney until 1589 when a dispute arose and the people of Putney denied access. Until the area was drained in c.1880 the common was mainly marshland. It was almost entirely treeless, as shown on the OS of 1870 but today is largely woodland, coppice and heathland with some open areas of grass where cricket is played. Avenues and roadside planting took place in the late C19th. In the centre of the common is Mill Hill, an island of houses at the site of a former windmill.
Fairacres is a private block of flats completed in 1936 on the west side of Roehampton Lane, overlooking Roehampton Golf Course. The land was once part of the estate of Lower Grove, the 1930s block on the site of Lower Grove House. The 4-storey block of 64 flats takes the form of a shallow crescent, which to the rear overlooks well-landscaped communal gardens. The garden was designed by Moyses Stevens in 1935, and comprises open lawns, trees and shrubberies, a pond and secluded areas.