Description
Ravenor Park is named after the Ravenor family who had long been associated with the Greenford area. George Ravenor had Ravenor Farm in 1899, and Ravenor House, now demolished, was one of the grand houses on Oldfield Lane. The cowshed barn adjacent to the park are all that remain from the farm. The park is on the site of Coston's Farm, named after Simon Coston who was a local benefactor in the C17th, and an old hedgerow remains from the former landscape as does a line of mature oaks that used to mark the farm boundaries. Speculative building accelerated in the 1920s and local councils were keen to preserve some land as public open space. Ealing Borough Council consequently purchased Coston's Farm in 1928 for the public park.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | Costons Farm Recreation Ground |
|---|---|
| Site location | Oldfield Lane South/ Ruislip Road, Greenford |
| Postcode | UB6 9LG |
| What3Words | ///aspect.result.most |
| Type of Site | Public Park |
| Borough | Ealing |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | unrestricted |
| Facilities | Playground, tennis courts, multi-use games area, adult exercise equipment, toilets |
| Events | Events such as Greenford Carnival and Bonfire Night Fireworks Display. |
| Public Transport | Tube: Greenford (Central) then walk. Bus: 95, 105, 282, E6, E7, E9, E10 |
| Research Updated | 1 October 2010 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
Ravenor Park is on sloping ground, named after the Ravenor family who had long been associated with the Greenford area. In the C17th Symo Ravenor was Constable of Greenford and is recorded as a member of a jury in a court in 1638. In 1899 a descendent, George Ravenor, was a local landowner and had Ravenor Farm. Ravenor House, demolished in the early 1970s, was one of the grand houses on Oldfield Lane. The cowshed barn with a hayloft at one end adjacent to the park are all that remain from the farm buildings and now house Ealing Heritage Centre and the London Motorbike Museum. The park is on the site of Coston's Farm, named after the wealthy Simon Coston who in the C17th was a local benefactor, his good works including the donation of fonts to the parish churches at Greenford and Perivale.
The area was largely agricultural until it began to be developed as a result of improved transport links, particularly the railway. Speculative building accelerated in the 1920s and the local councils were keen to preserve some land as public open space. Ealing Borough Council, which had been set up in 1901 and later absorbed the former Urban District Councils of Hanwell, Greenford and Perivale in 1926, consequently purchased Coston's Farm on 27 February 1928 for £9,360. Part was used as a council depot and the remainder was laid out as a public park, which was opened later that year, initially known as Costons Farm Recreation Ground. Just north of the park boundary is Ravenor Park Road, laid out in 1912/13 when the first housing estate in Greenford was being developed by a Mr B Long of Hanwell; by 1926 the estate had substantially covered the agricultural land. However, in Ravenor Park an old hedgerow remains from the former farm landscape as does a line of mature oaks that used to mark the farm boundaries.
The park layout contains a variety of C20th tree planting including commemorative planting and an avenue of white poplar along the path from the south east to an entrance from Ravenor Park Road, where there are a number of beds planted with ornamental shrubs and evergreen trees, including swamp cypress. At the top of the hill is a railed area with trees of different species planted by Greenford Royal Legion in June 1994 to commemorate the D-Day landing. A small formal garden with ornamental weeping cherry and rose beds is set into lawns, adjacent to the tennis courts. A small nature conservation area has been created on the west of the entrance on Ruislip Road, from which a drive with a mixed avenue including Lombardy and other poplars leads to the main body of the park, a few formal beds at this entrance. The Nature Area has examples of natural hedging and fencing, and paths through it, and consists of grassland surrounded by trees and shrubs on three sides.
The area was largely agricultural until it began to be developed as a result of improved transport links, particularly the railway. Speculative building accelerated in the 1920s and the local councils were keen to preserve some land as public open space. Ealing Borough Council, which had been set up in 1901 and later absorbed the former Urban District Councils of Hanwell, Greenford and Perivale in 1926, consequently purchased Coston's Farm on 27 February 1928 for £9,360. Part was used as a council depot and the remainder was laid out as a public park, which was opened later that year, initially known as Costons Farm Recreation Ground. Just north of the park boundary is Ravenor Park Road, laid out in 1912/13 when the first housing estate in Greenford was being developed by a Mr B Long of Hanwell; by 1926 the estate had substantially covered the agricultural land. However, in Ravenor Park an old hedgerow remains from the former farm landscape as does a line of mature oaks that used to mark the farm boundaries.
The park layout contains a variety of C20th tree planting including commemorative planting and an avenue of white poplar along the path from the south east to an entrance from Ravenor Park Road, where there are a number of beds planted with ornamental shrubs and evergreen trees, including swamp cypress. At the top of the hill is a railed area with trees of different species planted by Greenford Royal Legion in June 1994 to commemorate the D-Day landing. A small formal garden with ornamental weeping cherry and rose beds is set into lawns, adjacent to the tennis courts. A small nature conservation area has been created on the west of the entrance on Ruislip Road, from which a drive with a mixed avenue including Lombardy and other poplars leads to the main body of the park, a few formal beds at this entrance. The Nature Area has examples of natural hedging and fencing, and paths through it, and consists of grassland surrounded by trees and shrubs on three sides.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ142825 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 12.85 |
| Site Ownership | LB Ealing |
| Site Management | Leisure & Parks Service; West Ranger Team |
| Dates | 1928 |
| 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 | Ealing |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | Not known |
| Nature Conservation Area | Yes - Local Importance (Nature Area) |
| 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
Grenan Forde is first mentioned in 846 AD, the ford presumably crossing the River Brent. The Manor of Greenford was owned by Westminster Abbey until the C16th, and manor house and church were in the centre of the hamlet, the surrounding area rural into the C20th. Holy Cross Old Church was built or rebuilt in the late C15th/early C16th on the site of an earlier church. By 1939 it was too small for the growing parish and a new largely timber church was built at right angles to it. The churchyard has headstones dating from the early C16th, the oldest near the south porch. A Celtic Cross commemorates the Roy family of Greenford Hall, an C18th building that still stands nearby. Fine trees in the churchyard include a monkey puzzle and an ash and a small garden of rest dates from 1979.
Greenford Park Cemetery was opened as a private cemetery, later taken over by Greenford Council. It was laid out on former farmland on the west side of Brent Valley, with a grid of paths leading to a small chapel in the centre. It was declared open for interments 'at exceptionally low charges' in January 1902; in 1905 it was agreed that Hanwell parishioners could be buried there. The gravestones are set in mown grass, with some ornamental trees and shrubs as well as larger trees including horse chestnut, sycamore, Lombardy poplar and willow.
In 1935 Ealing Council purchased a site of over 12 acres of former farmland to create Jubilee Park and Jubilee Gardens, named for King George V's Silver Jubilee. The smaller area for Jubilee Gardens included an Arts and Crafts style Branch Library and Welfare Centre, with pleasure gardens having a lodge and WC, trees, flower beds and a shelter. The remaining area was laid out as a recreation ground with playground, provision for sport, paths, two shelters and tree planting. A pair of large black Italian poplar trees in the park pre-date the municipal layout.