Inventory Site Record

Queenscroft Recreation Ground was provided by Woolwich Borough Council after WWII for the growing population of the Eltham area, following building of its new housing estates such as the Middle Park Estate south of the park. The name is taken from an early C18th house of that name in Eltham. The land had been one of three deer parks within the estate of Eltham Palace, which was later farmed and then purchased for housing development in the 1930s. Some of the mature trees in the park pre-date the municipal layout, which included a popular model boating lake and paddling pool.

Previous / Other name:

Queenscroft Park

Site location:

Queenscroft Road/Kingsground, Eltham

Postcode:

SE9

What 3 Words:

evenly.boot.extra

Type of site:

Public Park

Borough:

Greenwich

Open to public?

Yes

Opening times:

9am - dusk

Special conditions:

Facilities:

Children's playground, 5-a-side football pitches, basketball courts

Events:

Public transport:

Rail: Eltham. Bus: 124, 160, 321, B16

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Google Map    
streetmap.co.uk

Research updated:

01/11/2007

Last minor changes:

19/07/2023

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

Much of this area was undeveloped until well into the C20th, apart from ribbon development along Eltham High Street, part of the main route between London and Kent, and around the parish church of St John (q.v.). Land to the south was once within the extensive parkland of Eltham Palace (q.v.), which included three deer parks, Great Park to the east, Middle Park, and Horn Park to the west, which were used as royal hunting grounds up until the reign of Charles I. During the Civil War Cromwell's soldiers were garrisoned at the palace and many of the trees were felled to provide timber for shipbuilding. Following the Restoration the land was largely used for farming; the OS map of 1938 shows Oakhurst Farm on the site that was later Queenscroft Recreation Ground.

In 1892 much of the former Great Park became Eltham Golf Course, later Royal Blackheath Golf Course (q.v.) and in the 1930s Woolwich Borough Council purchased much of Middle Park and Horn Park for housing development. In the C19th there had been a famous stud farm on Middle Park belonging to William Blenkiron (d.1871), who is buried in St John's Churchyard (q.v.) in Eltham. Queenscroft Road and streets to the south-west as far as the Dartford Loop railway line were laid out from 1931-36 for the Middle Park Estate, with Horn Park Estate built between 1936-50.

Queenscroft Recreation Ground was provided by Woolwich Borough Council for the new residential population, and was probably laid out after WWII. The OS map of 1950-57 shows the recreation ground with a large rectangular playground, large circular paddling pool, boating pool, drinking fountain, lavatories and 2 shelters, with a network of paths running from the main entrance at the junction of Kingsground and Queenscroft Road in the south, and leading to another entrance to the west. An entrance to the east is shown adjacent to an area with numerous trees. Eltham Hill School (now Eltham Hill Technology College) to the north of the recreation ground was built in 1927, also within former grounds of Eltham Palace, and to the west of the sports centre are remains of a walled garden with ruined gazebo dating from the late C17th.

On slightly undulating ground, there are remnants of the landscape that pre-dated the layout of the public park, in particular a notable clump of mature oak and lime trees, with a more recent line of Lombardy poplars. In a slight hollow below the playground and a small brick shelter are the remains of the paddling pool and model boating lake, now dry, which was evidently an elaborate ornamental water feature with concrete rubble walls, consisting of a series of circular ponds with an elongated portion, over which is a small bridge, the area partially surrounded by hedging. These facilities were popular in the 1950s and later, attracting residents from the local area and further afield. At that time the local parks were staffed by park keepers, but after this ceased in the early 1990s many suffered some neglect and vandalism. To the north of the park Eltham Hill Technology College and a modern sports centre occupy part of the site. The south part of the park is railed along Kingsground, and the boundary is planted with holly and other shrubs.

Sources consulted:

E F E Jefferson, 'The Woolwich Story 1890-1965', 1970; Darrell Spurgeon 'Discover Eltham and its Environs', Greenwich Guide-Books, 2000; LB Greenwich 'Queenscroft Recreation Ground Management Plan (draft), 2008.

Grid ref:

TQ421743 (542120,174335)

Size in hectares:

5.18

Site ownership:

RB Greenwich

Site management:

Parks and Open Spaces Department

Date(s):

1940s/50s

Designer(s):

Listed structures:

LBII: K2 Telephone Kiosk at corner of Queenscroft Road/Kingsground

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:

No

In Conservation Area:

No

Tree Preservation Order:

No

Nature Conservation Area:

No

Green Belt:

No

Metropolitan Open Land:

Yes

Special Policy Area:

Yes - Area of Special Character of Local Importance

Other LA designation:

Green Chain