Description
The site, which comprises two adjacent sports fields, is partly public open space and partly sports ground. Its recreational use dates from at least the 1920s. In 1920 an area of land at the west of Tenterden Fields was bequeathed for sports and later named after John Billam; a large flat open space, it had a pavilion built for Selfridge's Sports Ground, which was opened by Princess Wiasenski, daughter of Gordon Selfridge; the pavilion was subsequently acquired by Middlesex County Council and was later in private use. An aerial photograph taken in 1928 shows the sports field and pavilion; the OS Map of 1935 shows the site laid out with playing fields, tennis courts and pavilions.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | Tenterden Recreation Ground; John Billam Sports Ground |
|---|---|
| Site location | Woodcock Hill; Preston Road |
| Postcode | HA3 0PN |
| What3Words | ///magma.prove.lights |
| Type of Site | Public Park |
| Borough | Brent |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | check opening times |
| Special Conditions | Hire charges for booking football pitches |
| Facilities | Sports pitches: football, Gaelic football, 7-a-side (all bookings only). Children's playground, play area. Multi-use Games Area |
| Public Transport | Tube: Preston Road (Metropolitan). Bus: 79, 204 |
| Research Updated | 20 November 2023 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
John Billam Sports Ground comprises 6.13 hectares, with Tenterden Recreation or Sports Ground comprising 4.15 hectares. The John Billam & Tenterden Parks and Neighbourhood Group was formed in 2017 with a remit to oversee both spaces.
The cricket strip was renewed in 2015, and relocation to give more space to the popular sport is being considered. In 2019 Brent Parks Forum, with assistance from Brent Council's Parks Service contractors, planted native whips. There are plans to protect the biodiversity area that has developed within the former cricket net site. The Parks Forum has plans to create a nursery for trees and shrubs to supply to all parks in Brent, as Brent Parks' main depot.
The cricket strip was renewed in 2015, and relocation to give more space to the popular sport is being considered. In 2019 Brent Parks Forum, with assistance from Brent Council's Parks Service contractors, planted native whips. There are plans to protect the biodiversity area that has developed within the former cricket net site. The Parks Forum has plans to create a nursery for trees and shrubs to supply to all parks in Brent, as Brent Parks' main depot.
In 2023 Brent Council granted full planning permission to Forest United Youth Football Club (1973) for a new small pavilion to be built on the site of the original 1925 Cricket Pavilion. Other sports taking place on Tenterden Fields include hurling and Gaelic football, as well as informal cricket, now with a local Cricket Team established.
In 2023 John Billam & Tenterden Parks Group has been working with biologist E. Tatham (MBiol in Biological Sciences 2022 Ox) to record wildlife on site, as part of GiGL Biodiversity Recording.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ179877 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | LB Brent |
| Site Management | Parks Service; Brent Parks Forum; John Billam & Tenterden Parks Group |
| Dates | 1925 |
| 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 | Brent |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | No |
| Other LA Designation | Southern edge along railway is Wildlife Corridor |
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
Modestly designed interwar park created for the surrounding council housing of Preston Park Estate, built between 1927-37. The land was once part of Preston Farm, which until 1086 had belonged to the church. Preston was a rural hamlet until the station was opened in the area in 1931/2 although the railway had run through the area from 1880 and there was a halt by 1908. Planting in the park consists chiefly of willows and poplars, with some specimen trees and ornamental conifers; there is a bowling green to the east.
Lawns Court was a speculative housing development by Messrs Haymills designed in the International or Moderne style popular in the 1930s, with careful regard to the relationship between buildings and open space. The low-rise blocks are set back from The Avenue, fronted by a low brick retaining wall and hedges that forms the boundary of a communal green planted with grass and trees. Behind and to either side of this garden are the front gardens of ground floor flats formed as a continuous landscape strip.
Woodcock Park and Kenton Grange are divided by the Wealdstone Brook, both sections once part of the grounds of Kenton Grange, which was built as Kenton Lodge in 1803-7 with a small garden behind the house. The land extending to the stream was owned in the 1920s by Mr Jeffress, who built the picturesque cottage estate at Brookside Close. Jeffress sold the property in c.1952 to Middlesex County Council who turned Kenton Grange into an old people's home, and the remaining land into a public park. Woodcock Park has a good collection of trees and shrubs, with numerous mature specimens. The area south of the stream is more open with recreational facilities, largely grass and some scattered trees. A Pollinator Biodiversity Garden was created in Woodcock Park in 2022.
