Londonâs best local parks
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Clissold | Springfield | Battersea | Ravenscourt | Gladstone | Brockwell Finsbury | Victoria
Battersea Park Battersea Park, SW11
Battersea Park has so much going for it that it’s almost unfair. What other green space in the capital can boast Thames views, an art gallery and a zoo? It’s so full of variety it’s impossible not to stumble upon something new each time you visit. No other space so triumphantly meets the requirements of a public park, offering a refuge that’s both functional and beautiful: health and recreation for the urban dweller in excelsis.Getting in
4/10
The park’s flatness makes for a pleasant cycle around its 5km circumference. It is a bit off the beaten track, though: Battersea Park and Queenstown Road stations are walkable, but otherwise it’s the 137 from Sloane Square or one of several buses from Clapham Junction.History
9/10
Conceived to offer both pleasure and the regulation thereof in one of the capital’s dodgier districts, the park was opened by Queen Victoria in 1858. Five years later, Britain’s first sub-tropical gardens opened here following a plant-hunting mission to India. The constant drone of planes on the Heathrow flightpath evokes the anti-aircraft guns and barrage balloons stationed here during both World Wars. In 1951, as one of the central sites for the Festival of Britain, it was renamed the Festival Gardens and became home to the Guinness Clock, a tree walk and a funfair. After an £11 million redevelopment, it was reopened in 2004 by Prince Philip, but don’t hold that against it.
Park life
6/10
Kids love Battersea Park: the pedalos on the charming, landscaped boating lake, the sights and smells of the walled gardens, an adventure playground, One O’Clock Centres for parents and babies… But really, it’s all about the animals. An enclosure apparently containing deer (they’re elusive) is fun, but Battersea Park’s ace is its family-run zoo, complete with lemurs, meerkats and pygmy goats. The café is a bit of a disappointment, offering canteen fare and long queues. Loos, at least, are numerous.Fun stuff
9/10
Battersea Park hosted the first exhibition of FA-rules football in 1864, and produced Wanderers FC, winners of the inaugural FA Cup. This sporting tradition continues, with tennis courts, all-weather pitches, wickets, the Millennium Arena athletics track and a bowling green and boules pitch. Trim trails litter the park for the many runners training for the frequent 5km and 10km runs. Jazz concerts take place on the bandstand every Tuesday and Friday evening in summer, while other shindigs include Battersea Dogs and Cats Home Reunions, fairs and shows in the ‘British Genius Site’ (effectively a big car park).
Landmarks
8/10
The Pump House art gallery is Grade II listed and home to splendidly quirky exhibitions. The Peace Pagoda (to commemorate Hiroshima) provides a gateway to the curious oriental-themed ‘Grand Vista’. Plenty of intriguing sculptures dot the park, including a Henry Moore, an odd Soviet-style war memorial and ‘Brown Dog’, a tribute to the hound that became an emblem of the anti-vivisectionist movement. Gabriel TateTotal:
36/50
Battersea Park, SW11 (www.batterseapark.org). Battersea Park/Queenstown Rd rail or Sloane Square tube then 137 or 432 bus. Open 8am-dusk.
Clissold | Springfield | Battersea | Ravenscourt | Gladstone | Brockwell Finsbury | Victoria - Add your comment to this feature
Conceived to offer both pleasure and the regulation thereof in one of the capital’s dodgier districts, the park was opened by Queen Victoria in 1858. Five years later, Britain’s first sub-tropical gardens opened here following a plant-hunting mission to India. The constant drone of planes on the Heathrow flightpath evokes the anti-aircraft guns and barrage balloons stationed here during both World Wars. In 1951, as one of the central sites for the Festival of Britain, it was renamed the Festival Gardens and became home to the Guinness Clock, a tree walk and a funfair. After an £11 million redevelopment, it was reopened in 2004 by Prince Philip, but don’t hold that against it.
Kids love Battersea Park: the pedalos on the charming, landscaped boating lake, the sights and smells of the walled gardens, an adventure playground, One O’Clock Centres for parents and babies… But really, it’s all about the animals. An enclosure apparently containing deer (they’re elusive) is fun, but Battersea Park’s ace is its family-run zoo, complete with lemurs, meerkats and pygmy goats. The café is a bit of a disappointment, offering canteen fare and long queues. Loos, at least, are numerous.Battersea Park hosted the first exhibition of FA-rules football in 1864, and produced Wanderers FC, winners of the inaugural FA Cup. This sporting tradition continues, with tennis courts, all-weather pitches, wickets, the Millennium Arena athletics track and a bowling green and boules pitch. Trim trails litter the park for the many runners training for the frequent 5km and 10km runs. Jazz concerts take place on the bandstand every Tuesday and Friday evening in summer, while other shindigs include Battersea Dogs and Cats Home Reunions, fairs and shows in the ‘British Genius Site’ (effectively a big car park). 
The Pump House art gallery is Grade II listed and home to splendidly quirky exhibitions. The Peace Pagoda (to commemorate Hiroshima) provides a gateway to the curious oriental-themed ‘Grand Vista’. Plenty of intriguing sculptures dot the park, including a Henry Moore, an odd Soviet-style war memorial and ‘Brown Dog’, a tribute to the hound that became an emblem of the anti-vivisectionist movement. Clissold | Springfield | Battersea | Ravenscourt | Gladstone | Brockwell Finsbury | Victoria
