Inventory Site Record

Branch Hill Woodland was originally part of Hampstead Heath, from which it was cut off when Branch Hill House was built in its own grounds in the 1860s. Branch Hill Allotments are now on part of its former garden. The sloping site also has areas of woodland, open grass and wooded grounds of private houses. One area is particularly known for its bluebells. Housing development in the woodland includes Oak Hill Park built with landscaped grounds and below Branch Hill House is a low-rise tiered housing scheme built unobtrusively in the midst of the woods.

Site location:

Branch Hill/Oak Hill Way/Spedan Close/Heysham Lane, Hampstead

Postcode:

NW3 7LT

What 3 Words:

artist.dared.noble

Type of site:

Private Open Land;, Private Garden

Borough:

Camden

Open to public?

Partially

Opening times:

Most woodland unrestricted, but access to some areas is unofficial.
Has taken part in Open Garden Squares Weekend 15 times, most recently in 2024.

Special conditions:

Facilities:

Children's playground at Spedan Close

Events:

Branch Hill Allotments have opened for OGSW

Public transport:

Tube: Finchley Road (Jubilee, Metropolitan). London Overground: Hampstead Heath. Bus: 46, 210, 268

Citymapper    
Google Map    
streetmap.co.uk

Research updated:

01/06/2011

Last minor changes:

19/07/2023

Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news. www.camden.gov.uk

The sloping site of the woodland is situated south of West Heath and was originally part of Hampstead Heath (q.v.) from which it was cut off when Branch Hill House was built in its own grounds in the 1860s. The former lodge to the house, now called The Gardens, remains on Branch Hill, a Gothic building reputedly designed by S S Teulon and built in 1868. Branch Hill House was once owned by John Spedan Lewis, founder of the John Lewis Partnership. It was later purchased by Camden Council and converted to accommodation for the elderly in the 1970s.

Branch Hill Allotments are now situated on what was once part of the garden of Branch Hill House, probably including a kitchen garden for which part of a wall remains, where there were glasshouses. It may also have once been the site of a tennis court. In the 1980s the neglected gardens were taken on by enterprising gardeners who informally maintained them by growing vegetables here. Their endeavours had the support of local residents and The Heath Society, and resulted in Camden Council earmarking the land for community use as allotments. LB Camden now manages 32 plots here, although a number are divided in two, and some 40 allotment-holders belong to Branch Hill Allotments Association. The Association aims to allow wildness while developing cultivation in this area once frequented by poets such as John Keats and Gerard Manley Hopkins, and artists such as John Constable and George Romney.

The Branch Hill site includes a number of areas of woodland, areas of open grass, a wooded bank south of Firecrest Drive as well as the private wooded grounds of Coombe Edge, Oak Hill House and Heysham House. Largely secondary woodland, it includes native and exotic trees, and is important for wildlife. The area of Oak Hill Wood is particularly known for its bluebells. The Oak Hill Park development was built in 1961-65 by Michael Lyell Associates, with landscaped grounds.

Below Branch Hill House is an interesting low-rise tiered housing scheme unobtrusively built in the midst of the woods on a site purchased in 1965 by LB Camden. The estate was designed in 1974-78 by Gordon Benson and Alan Forsyth. The covenants that governed the site required the housing to be 2-storey and semi-detached. Narrow stepped paths run down the hillside between the tiered houses which amount to five storeys, but in effect due to the tiering are within the 2-storey stipulation. The houses have gardens that also form the roof of the house below, thus blending into the surrounding green space.

Sources consulted:

Michael Waite, Daniel Keech, Meg Game, 'Nature Conservation in Camden', Ecology Handbook 24 (London Ecology Unit), 1993; Andrew Saint (introduction), 'London Suburbs', Merrell Holberton Publishers 1999; Open Gardens Squares Weekend 2011 booklet

Grid ref:

TQ259860 (525990,186010)

Size in hectares:

3.7

Site ownership:

LB Camden (part) and Private

Site management:

LB Camden (part) and Private

Date(s):

1860s

Designer(s):

Listed structures:

LBII: The Gardens (former lodge to Branch Hill House)

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 Data

The information below is taken from the relevant Local Authority's planning legislation, which was correct at the time of research but may have been amended in the interim. Please check with the Local Authority for latest planning information.

On Local List:

Yes

In Conservation Area:

Yes

Conservation Area name:

Hampstead Village

Tree Preservation Order:

Not known

Nature Conservation Area:

Yes - Borough Importance I

Green Belt:

No

Metropolitan Open Land:

No

Special Policy Area:

Yes - Area of Special Character: Hampstead & Highgate Ridge

Other LA designation:

Public Open Space (Small Local)

Branch Hill Woodland, August 2002. Photo: S Williams

Click a photo to enlarge.

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