Green space in

central London Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning the City of London and several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local gove ...

consists of five of the capital's eight Royal Parks, supplemented by a number of small

garden square A garden square is a type of communal garden in an urban area wholly or substantially surrounded by buildings; commonly, it continues to be applied to public and private parks formed after such a garden becomes accessible to the public at large. ...

s scattered throughout the city centre. Open space in the rest of the region is dominated by the remaining three Royal Parks and many other parks and open spaces of a range of sizes, run mainly by the local

London boroughs The London boroughs are the current 32 local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London, England; each is governed by a London borough council. The present London boroughs wer ...

, although other owners include the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

and the

City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the local authority of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United Kingdom's f ...

. London is made of 40% public green space, including 3,000 parks and totaling .

Royal parks

The centrepieces of Greater London's park system are the eight Royal Parks of London. Covering 1,976 hectares (4,882 acres), they are former royal hunting grounds which are now open to the public. *

Richmond Park Richmond Park, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is the largest of Royal Parks of London, London's Royal Parks and is of national and international importance for wildlife conservation. It was created by Charles I of England, Cha ...

* Bushy Park *

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the London Borough of Camden, Borough of Camden (and historical ...

* Hyde Park *

Kensington Gardens Kensington Gardens, once the private gardens of Kensington Palace, are among the Royal Parks of London. The gardens are shared by the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and sit immediately to the west of Hyde Pa ...

* Greenwich Park * St James's Park *

Green Park The Green Park, one of the Royal Parks of London, is in the City of Westminster, Central London. Green Park is to the north of the gardens and semi-circular forecourt of Buckingham Palace, across Constitution Hill road. The park is in the m ...

Garden squares

Many of the smaller green spaces in central London are

s, which were built for the private use of the residents of the fashionable districts, but in some cases are now open to the public. Notable examples open to the public are

Russell Square Russell Square is a large garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden, built predominantly by the firm of James Burton (property developer), James Burton. It is near the University of London's main buildings and the British Mus ...

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London, part of the London Borough of Camden in England. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural institution, cultural, intellectual, and educational ...

, Lincoln's Inn Fields in Holborn and Soho Square in

Soho SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...

. The

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (often known by its initialism as RBKC) is an Inner London, Inner London borough with Royal borough, royal status. It is the List of English districts by area, smallest borough in London and the secon ...

contains over a hundred garden squares whose use is restricted to residents. The upkeep of many of these spaces (also named for example Crescents, Gardens, Place) is paid for through a levy on top of residents' council tax.

Council parks

In addition to these spaces, a large number of council-owned parks were developed between the mid 19th century and the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

London Borough of Tower Hamlets The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London boroughs, borough in London, England. Situated on the north bank of the River Thames and immediately east of the City of London, the borough spans much of the traditional East End of London and ...

* Victoria Park 86.18 ha (213 acres),

London Borough of Wandsworth Wandsworth () is a London boroughs, London borough in South West (London sub region), South West London, England. It forms part of Inner London and has an estimated population of 329,677 inhabitants. Its main communities are Battersea, Balham, P ...

Battersea Park Battersea Park is a 200-acre (83-hectare) green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in London. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea, London, Chelsea and was opened in 1858. The park occupies ...

83 ha (205 acres).

London Borough of Lewisham Lewisham ( ) is a London boroughs, London borough in south-east London, England. It forms part of Inner London. The principal settlement of the borough is Lewisham. The local authority is Lewisham London Borough Council, based in Catford. The ...

* Beckenham Place Park 96 hectares

London Borough of Bromley The London Borough of Bromley () is a London Borough, borough in London, England. It is the largest and southeasternmost borough in London, and borders the county of Kent, of which it formed part until 1965. The borough's population in the 2021 ...

* Crystal Palace Park, South London 80 ha (200 acres) Lambeth Council * Brockwell Park 51 hectares (126 acres)

London Borough of Haringey The London Borough of Haringey ( , same as Harringay) is a London boroughs, London borough in north London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner London, and by others as part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 by the amalgamation ...

* Alexandra Park 80 ha (197.68 acres) :*Tottenham Parks ::* Bruce Castle park, Tottenham's oldest park. ::* Lordship Recreation Ground ::* Tottenham Marshes ::* Tottenham Cemetery has park grounds. ::* Downhills Park ::* Chestnuts Park ::* Down Lane Park, metropolitan park since 1907 with soccer fields, tennis courts, playground, an outdoor gym and a BMX track for cyclers. ::* Markfield Park ::* The Green (Tottenham) ::* Brunswick Road Open Space ::* Chapman's Green *

City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a London borough with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in Greater London, England. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It contains a large par ...

Grosvenor Square Grosvenor Square ( ) is a large garden square in the Mayfair district of Westminster, Greater London. It is the centrepiece of the Mayfair property of the Duke of Westminster, and takes its name from the duke's surname "Grosvenor". It was deve ...

Other green spaces

Other major open spaces in the suburbs include: They have a more informal and semi-natural character, having originally been countryside areas protected against surrounding urbanisation. Some cemeteries provide extensive green land within the city — notably Highgate Cemetery, burial place of

Karl Marx Karl Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, political theorist, economist, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. He is best-known for the 1848 pamphlet '' The Communist Manifesto'' (written with Friedrich Engels) ...

and

Michael Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English chemist and physicist who contributed to the study of electrochemistry and electromagnetism. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic inducti ...

amongst others. Completing London's array of green spaces are two paid entrance gardens — the leader is the Royal Botanic Garden at

Kew Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is ...

, whilst the royal residence of

Hampton Court Palace Hampton Court Palace is a Listed building, Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. Opened to the public, the palace is managed by Historic Royal ...

also has a celebrated garden. All

Outer London Outer London is the group of London boroughs that form a ring around Inner London. Together, the inner and outer boroughs form London, the capital city of the United Kingdom. The population at the 2021 Census was 5,395,500, which means over 60% o ...

boroughs contain sections of the Metropolitan Green Belt.

Commons

There are over a hundred registered commons in London, ranging in size from small fragments of land to large expanses.

Lavender fields

Lavish Lavender Carshalton London Borough of Sutton

There are two historic lavender fields in the

London Borough of Sutton The London Borough of Sutton () is an Outer London London boroughs, borough in south London, England. It covers an area of and is the 80th largest local authority in England by population. It borders the London Borough of Croydon to the east, ...

. One, at Oaks Way, Carshalton Beeches is three acres in size and is run as a not-for-profit community project. The other, a 25-acre commercial site in Croydon Lane called Mayfield, is popular with tourists. Situated on the North Downs of Surrey, the locality is ideal for lavender cultivation, owing to the chalky free-draining nature of the soil. It was known as the "Lavender Capital of the World" from the 18th to the early 20th centuries, with global production of the plant centred here and blue fields dotting the area.

Greenways

There are several types of London greenways including The Greenway and the Thames Path.

By location

London National Park City

London was officially declared the world's first National Park City in July 2019. A National Park City is inspired by the family of

National Parks A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

but is not the same as a National Park: it is a “large urban area that is managed and semi-protected through both formal and informal means to enhance the natural capital of its living landscape". It is led by volunteers with a network of supporters and backing from councils' including the

Mayor of London The mayor of London is the chief executive of the Greater London Authority. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom. The current ...

with activities linking to the Greater London Authorities' Environment Strategy. The London National Park City was established by the National Park City Foundation PCF which aims to inspire 25 National Park Cities around the world by 2025.

References

External links

London Parks and Gardens Trust Green-Spaces Guide to LondonGreen Spaces Near You in LondonLondon National Park City
{{London landmarks