Description
Tufnell Park Playing Fields were formed on the site of a C19th cricket pitch. It was later the University of London Playing Field, but is now owned by LB Islington and is a large grassy expanse, part railed with trees around its south, north and west boundaries.
Practical Information
| Site location | Campdale Road/Tufnell Park Road |
|---|---|
| Postcode | N7 0EG |
| What3Words | ///rugs.spring.squad |
| Type of Site | Public Park |
| Borough | Islington |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | 8am - dusk |
| Special Conditions | No dogs |
| Facilities | Children's playground, cricket net, tennis courts, football pitches, toilets |
| Public Transport | Tube: Tufnell Park (Northern). Bus: 4, 134, 390 |
| Research Updated | 1 September 2010 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
What is now called Tufnell Park Road was probably once a Roman road. The Tufnell family came to own the northern manor of Barnsbury and built the Tufnell Park Estate. The site of the medieval manor house of Barnsbury was on the corner of Tufnell Park Road and Holloway Road, the site of the Odeon Cinema. William Tufnell was the son of a brewer with rich relatives among whom was his godfather through whom he acquired the manor in 1753/4, provided he changed his name to Joliffe. An Act of Parliament of 1768 enabled Tufnell to grant building leases although these were not taken up until the C19th, and building was not underway to any extent until the 1830s, continuing until the end of the C19th. The Tufnell Park Estate surveyor, George Truefitt, designed the majority of the 1860s villas as well as the church of St George, now St George's Theatre. Later housing was less well designed.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ294860 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 1.92 |
| Site Ownership | LB Islington |
| Site Management | Greenspace; Tufnell Park Playing Fields Partnership Panel |
| Dates | C19th |
| 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 | Islington |
| In Conservation Area | No |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| 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
Dalmeny Park is a small secluded park behind Victorian housing, reserved 'for use by children and elderly' containing a playground, sandpit, grass and some trees. In the 1870s building was beginning to cover the rural area and by the 1890s much of the surrounding housing had been completed although land to the south of the park site remained unbuilt on until the early C20th. Previously for private use of residents of the surrounding housing the park is now public, owned by LB Islington.
Whittington Park started life in 1954 as a small public open space of under 1 acre, but it was not officially opened until August 1973 by which time it had grown to c.6 acres. It was opened by the then Mayor of Islington, Cllr Harry Reid. Festivities included a play with over 300 children taking part, a barbecue for 500 people and a disco in the evening. A time capsule, to be opened in 50 years' time, August 2023, was buried with a message to be read by future Islingtonians. Since 1973, the park has been extended to over 10 acres and provides numerous sport and play facilities. Horticultural features include rose and shrub beds, woodland and a war memorial is set into the grass near the park's boundary with Holloway Road.
Dartmouth Park takes its name from the Earl of Dartmouth who bought land here in the mid C18th. Housing development accelerated from the mid C19th and the need to increase the supply of fresh water to serve London's expanding population meant that water companies were building new facilities. Two covered reservoirs were constructed on Dartmouth Park Hill in 1855 by the New River Company and connected to its new waterworks and pumping station by Stoke Newington reservoirs. Dartmouth Park was laid out on the edge of the reservoirs and opened to the public in 1972. The land slopes steeply to the north and the east of the reservoirs, which are now covered with grassland. The top of the slope gives a bird's eye view over south-east London. The park has an enclosed seating area surrounded by a hedge, which local children helped to plant in 1991.