Whitewebbs Park is public access land owned by Enfield Council, which over hundreds of years going back to the time when Enfield Chase was a royal hunting ground has seen many challenges and disputes over public access and usage. The Park contained Whitewebbs House, where the Gunpowder Plot may have been hatched in 1605.
Image: LB Enfield
The latest contentious issue involves Tottenham Hotspur football club. Enfield Council has owned the land (held in trust for the people of Enfield) since the 1930’s. The area includes ancient woodland (now notorious for the destruction of a 500 year old oak tree), open parkland, a golf course, a public house and several old properties. Beside its social and heritage value, the park is home to 80 species of birds, 29 species of butterflies, nine species of bats, and impressive numbers of newts and badgers. Given the fragile nature of some of this wildlife, park users and local communities have been concerned about the effect of some proposed significant changes.
The justification for change is that the Park needs a degree of land management to maintain it in a reasonable condition. The management was originally financed through revenue from the public golf course, but this facility will not be available in future. Enfield has granted the football club a 25 year lease over a large part of the park, mainly to re-purpose a large part of the golf course. The intention of Tottenham Hotspur is to re-enclose a large piece of the land for all-weather pitches, changing facilities, a cafe and a “turf academy”.
Image: LB Enfield
A history of the heritage can be found at Whitewebbs Heritage . The proposals are detailed in a PDF document here.