Broomfield Park * (Enfield)
Brief Description
* on The National Heritage List for England, Parks & Gardens
Broomfield Lodge was reputedly built as a hunting lodge for James I but has been altered and expanded repeatedly over the years. Surviving remnants of the earlier layout of the estate include an early C18th stable block, and a chain of 3 formal ponds running north-south to the west of the house. In 1901 most of the land was sold for development and in 1902 the house and 54 acres of grounds were purchased by Southgate UDC. Broomfield Park opened to the public in 1903. In 1925 Broomfield House was converted into a local museum and since then has been used for a variety of purposes over the years. The formal garden, ponds and house are enclosed by C16th and C18th brick walls, the western wall dividing the formal gardens from the more informal landscape of grass and trees. Entrance gates on Aldermans Hill were opened by the Mayor of Southgate Borough in 1953 to commemorate 50 years since the acquisition of the park and the Queen's coronation. A Garden of Remembrance was laid out and opened in 1929.
Practical Information
- Previous / Other name:
- Broomfield Estate
- Site location:
- Aldermans Hill/Broomfield Lane/Powys Lane, Palmers Green
- Postcode:
- N13 4HE
- What 3 Words:
- speeds.window.occupy
- Type of site:
- Public Park, Garden Feature Remnants
- Borough:
- Enfield
- Open to public?
- Yes
- Opening times:
- 8am Mon-Sat / 8.30am Sundays to dusk. Conservatory: Sun & Wed pm (for times see Friends website)
- Special conditions:
- Facilities:
- Adventure playground and adventure golf course, children's playground, yacht pond, basketball court, football pitch, netball/tennis courts, toilet. The Palmers Greenery Community Cafe. Conservatory
- Events:
- Bandstand concerts (Sunday afternoons in August). See Friends of Broomfield Park website for events
- Public transport:
- Rail: Palmers Green. Bus: 121, W6
- Research updated:
- 03/03/2025
- Last minor changes:
- 07/03/2025
Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news. www.enfield.gov.uk; https://www.fobp.uk/
Full Site Description
Site on The National Heritage List for England, Parks & Gardens, for Register Entry see https://www.historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list
Broomfield Lodge was reputedly built as a hunting lodge for James I in the C16th but it has been altered and expanded repeatedly over the years. A house is shown on the earliest parish map of the mid C16th in the ownership of Geoffrey Walkaden. In Elizabethan times it was the property of Alderman Sir John Spencer and by 1624 there are records of a substantial house 'with 14 hearths' belonging to a City merchant, Joseph Jackson. Jackson improved and enlarged both house and estate in the early C18th, probably including the formal gardens to the west that are shown on John Rocque's map of 1754. Surviving remnants of the earlier layout include an early C18th stable block to the south-east of the house, and a chain of 3 rectangular formal ponds running north-south to the west of the house; on the west side of the southernmost pond is a half-timbered bandstand erected in 1926. The fourth, northern-most oval pond was created in the early C20th as a model boating lake and has a shelter at its northern end. To the east is a garden area and children's playground. The formal gardens, ponds and house are enclosed by red brick walls that date from the C16th and C18th, the northern part of which has been demolished. The eastern wall has an early C18th summer house with wooden Ionic columns built into it. The western wall divides the formal gardens from the more informal landscape of grass and trees, accessed through a gateway either side of which are openings in the brickwork, now infilled with modern railings but which may be early features serving as clairvoyées. In the C18th a double avenue of elms led to the west front of the house, which has since been replanted with limes.
In 1773 Mary Jackson had the property and on her death in 1811 she left it to Louise Powys and her husband Henry Phillip Powys of Hardwick House of the Oxfordshire parish of Whitchurch. Although the Powys family owned Broomfield until 1902, they lived here until 1858 after which it was let to a series of tenants, including the barrister Sir Ralph Little. In 1901 most of the land was sold for development and in 1902 the house and 54 acres of its grounds were purchased by Southgate Urban District Council and opened to the public on 25 April 1903 as Broomfield Park. Although the architect Thomas H Mawson advised on the layout of the grounds as a public park, his designs appearing in 'Civic Art', few of his recommendations were actually implemented. Broomfield House, the oldest surviving part of which is c.200 years old, was converted in 1925 into a local museum and in 1928-32 the Council added fake timberwork. It was used for a variety of purposes, including a school, a health centre, a café/family restaurant and an arts space, but it was badly damaged in a number of fires in 1984, 1993 and again in 1994, when a staircase and a series of early C18th murals by Gerald Lanscroon were damaged. Since then the future of Broomfield House has been the subject of much discussion as to its restoration and future use. In October 2012 a joint bid was submitted to the Heritage Lottery Fund by Enfield Council and the community to rebuild and reopen Broomfield House as a heritage, learning and community centre but was unsuccessful. In 2025 a new development project is due to begin with a National Lottery Heritage Fund application to plan the restoration and preservation of the park’s heritage, structures, in order to ensure their long-term conservation. Broomfield House and the C18th Stable Block are on Historic England's Heritage at Risk List (2025), deemed at High Risk, with the park itself also listed as having medium vulnerability.
The public amenities that were provided when the grounds were adapted for a public park included tennis courts and two bowling greens beyond the walled garden to the north, and a model boating lake; football pitches were provided pre-WWI with a running track added in 1919. In 1926/7 a half-timbered bandstand was erected on the west of the southernmost pond and is still in use today, hosting for example the Broomfield Blues Summer Concerts. The model boating lake was restored in 2024, and nearby is a miniature golf course run by Broomfield Adventure Golf. The bowling greens are no longer in use for bowling, that formerly the home of Southgate Bowls Club is now a venue for outdoor arts and cultural events, and the other was planted as a Community Orchard in 2009, and has an apiary, with annual Apple Day events held here. Other amenities included a Conservatory erected in 1934; an Aviary; and a Garden for the Blind.
The lower area to the east of the house, formerly gravel pits, was levelled before WWI to provide playing fields but was used for food growing during the war. After the war the land was re-levelled and on August Bank Holiday 1919 a running track opened. A football pitch was laid out in the central area, leased for 5 years from 1947 to Southgate Olympic FC. In 1950 a new running track was prepared by Southgate's Borough Surveyor and Deputy Borough Engineer, and was formally opened on 28 June, hosting the borough championships to celebrate the opening, with medals presented by the Mayoress. It is the subject of a film by Planet Film Society, now in Enfield Local Studies Library and Archive, which can be viewed on the London's Screen Archives website. It shows footage of numerous track and field events including the high jump, long jump and various sprints, hurdles and steeplechases in front of a vast crowd. Although he didn't appear as billed in the opening events in 1950, famous athlete Roger Bannister did run on the track the following year; he went on to beat the 4-minute mile on 6 May 1954. The running track was eventually grassed over in 1995.
The Conservatory was opened to the public in October 1934 with a 'splendid display of chrysanthemums' (recorded in the Palmers Green & Southgate Gazette, 26 October 1934), and was open daily for visitors to admire the rich collection of exotic and ornamental plants grown there. It was built by Messrs W Richardson of Darlington at a cost of £912 courtesy of a loan from the Ministry of Health to Southgate BC. At that time Broomfield Park employed a large team of gardeners, and plants were propagated and brought on in the Conservatory ready for planting out in the beds and borders of the park. Over subsequent years the Conservatory suffered repeatedly from vandalism, with so much glass breakage forcing its closure to the public on safety grounds in August 2003. Its dilapidation continued until 2009, when Enfield Council commissioned a major refurbishment project costing c.£130,000 for new glazing, joinery and redecoration (reported in February 2010 in the Enfield Independent Newspaper). Since 2010, with the input of volunteers, who also raised funding, the stock of interesting and unusual plants was enhanced, and in 2015 new railings (formerly at the Triangle toilets in Palmers Green) were installed in front of the building. However, volunteers continued to advocate for better maintenance and in October 2017 succeeded in persuading Enfield Council to undertake further restoration works, which led to all the rotten woodwork being replaced and repainted in Spring 2018; in Spring 2024 more structural work was completed to restore the lantern at the top section of the roof. The Conservatory is now open to the public 2 days a week, courtesy of Friends of Broomfield Park volunteers. It contains a central bed with plants from deserts and dry areas of the world; a collection of canna lilies, gingers and begonias; yucca and Strelitzia regina, the latter survivors when the Conservatory fell into disrepair; and a banana that regularly flowers and fruits. It has a fish pond and waterfall, and perimeter staging where special collections are displayed, including cacti, bromeliads, carnivorous and other interesting and unusual plants, and a ‘Fourth Plinth’ where temporary collections are displayed at different times of the year.
The Coronation Gates on Aldermans Hill were erected in 1953 to commemorate 50 years since the acquisition of the park and the Queen's coronation, as inscribed on a stone panel set in the wall nearby: 'This entrance was commenced during the year of the coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth ll to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the acquisition of Broomfield Park'. The original gates were formally opened by the Mayor of Southgate Borough, Alderman C W F Ridley JP, on Saturday 11 July 1953, but they were replaced in 1963 /64 by the gates found here today. Also at the entrance here is a stone plaque with a bas-relief showing people engaged in sporting activities in the park by the sculptor George A Holman who was living in Winchmore Hill at the time.
The Friends of Broomfield Park was established to 'protect, preserve, and enhance the natural beauty, historical significance, and recreational facilities of the park for the enjoyment and benefit of the public'. The Friends organise regular conservation and maintenance activities with volunteers, as well as running numerous events. Its horticultural group maintains the long border, walled garden, Conservatory and Garden of Remembrance, as well as the wetlands and wildlife habitats throughout the park, and tree and hedgerow planting. Awards from Enfield in Bloom endorses the important contribution by volunteers to the park’s environment. The Friends work in partnership with local sports, educational and community groups in order to promote and improve the recreational facilities and encourage local communities to make use of them for physical health and mental wellbeing, as well as engaging in activities to promote biodiversity. In 2025, the Friends are in preparation to become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation.
In the early 1970s Arthur Mee described Broomfield Park as 'one of the most charming and varied in all the London area'. The park is in three distinct sections: entered from the west from Powys Lane the landscape is an open grassed area with a number of trees, including mature oak and lime trees; beyond this is the red-brick walled area of formal gardens, ponds and Broomfield House. To the east of the house the land slopes down to the sports and playing fields and large children's playground. The park's fine trees include Atlas Cedar, Indian Bean Tree and Turkey Oak. Flower beds and borders have been restored in recent years, with a dedicated team of volunteers and undertaken through careful planning, research and local consultation by the Friends' Horticultural Team led by Elizabeth Dobbie and Vic Black. The aim is to work alongside Enfield's Parks Management Team and gardeners to develop and maintain the historic Walled Garden flower beds.
Following public consultation in 2017, a new wetlands was created in 2019 in the south-east corner of the open grassland in the park near the Powys Lane entrance, as part of a wider flood alleviation scheme led by Thames 21 and Enfield Council. The aims of the scheme are to reduce flood risk for properties in the local area and downstream; improvements in water quality in the Pymmes Brook catchment; enhancements for biodiversity through creation of diverse and interesting habitats; improvements to drainage from waterlogged areas of the park; as well as opportunities for community participation and provision of new spaces and land types for visitors to enjoy.
The Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England was established in 1984 and was commonly called English Heritage. In April 2015 it split into 2 separate entities, Historic England (HE), which continues to champion and protect the historic environment, and the English Heritage Trust, whose role is to look after the 400+ historic sites and monuments owned by the state. HE manages the National Heritage List for England (NHLE) that includes over 400,000 items ranging from prehistoric monuments to office blocks, battlefields and parks, which benefit from legal protection.
Sources consulted:
Arthur Mee 'The King's England: London North of the Thames except the City and Westminster' (Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, 1972); Bridget Cherry & Nikolaus Pevsner, The Buildings of England: London 4: North (Penguin, 1998); Victoria County History; Ben Weinreb & Christopher Hibbert, 'The London Encyclopaedia' (Macmillan, revised ed. 1993); NHLE Register entry; Enfield Council leaflet; Bernard Byrom, 'Old Southgate and Palmers Green' (Stenlake Publishing, 2008); Steven Brindle 'Broomfield, An Illustrated History of the House and Garden' (Southgate District Civic Trust, 1994); Friends of Broomfield Park website: https://www.fobp.uk/. With thanks to Richard Purver, “The Greatest Collection of Athletic Talent Ever Assembled in this Part of North London" The Opening of the New Running Track in Broomfield Park in June 1950' Southgate District Civic Trust, Newsletter no.250 October 2019 (Part 1), Newsletter no.251, January 2020 (Part 2); https://player.bfi.org.uk/free/film/watch-southgates-new-running-track-broomfield-park-1930s-1950-online; Friends of Broomfield Park, Annual Report 2024 https://irp.cdn-website.com/44583aa5/files/uploaded/FoBP_Annual_Report_for_AGM.pdf; https://irp-cdn.multiscreensite.com/44583aa5/files/uploaded/Broomfield-Park-Wetlands-Consultation-Document-Summer-2017-1%20%281%29.pdf.
Further Information (Planning and Conservation)
- Grid ref:
- TQ304925 (530316,192751)
- Size in hectares:
- 21.40
- Site ownership:
- LB Enfield
- Site management:
- Place Shaping and Enterprise, Parks Business Unit; Friends of Broomfield Park
- Date(s):
- C16th, C18th, 1903
- Designer(s):
- T H Mawson (recommendations); Garden of Remembrance: R Phillips
- Listed structures:
- LBII*: Broomfield House; remains of C16-18th east wall with attached early C18th pavilion/garden house & stableblock. LBII: remains of C16th-C18th west, south and north walls of Broomfield House enclosing ponds
- On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens:
Yes- NHLE grade:
- Grade II
- 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:
- No
- In Conservation Area:
- No
- Tree Preservation Order:
- Not known
- Nature Conservation Area:
- Yes - Local Importance
- Green Belt:
- No
- Metropolitan Open Land:
- Yes
- Special Policy Area:
- No
- Other LA designation:
- Included in National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens
Photos
Broomfield Park - Photo: Sarah Jackson
Date taken: 03/02/07 11:45
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1903 Click a photo to enlarge.
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