Inventory Site Record

The site of Wandle Park was formerly that of Wandlebank House and grounds, owned from 1791-1821 by James Perry, who owned the Merton Corn Mill, an important industry on the Wandle River from medieval times. The land was purchased by Wimbledon Corporation and vested in the National Trust for a public park, which opened in 1907. The Mill Pond Garden was added in 1910 purchased through public subscription; the pond dating the late Eighteenth Century was created as a reservoir for the Merton Corn Mill. Wandle Park was re-designed in 2003 in order to transform its wetland features.

Previous / Other name:

Wandlebank House

Site location:

Wandle Bank/Byegrove Road/Merton High Street, Colliers Wood

Postcode:

SW19 2BL

What 3 Words:

cure.cheeks.depend

Type of site:

Public Park

Borough:

Merton

Open to public?

Yes

Opening times:

unrestricted

Special conditions:

Facilities:

Play area, car park

Events:

Public transport:

Tube: Colliers Wood (Northern). Bus: 157, 52, 200, 219, 493, N155

Citymapper    
Google Map    
streetmap.co.uk

Research updated:

15/12/2026

Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news. www.merton.gov.uk/environment/openspaces/parks/parks_in_the_wimbledon_area

Wandle Park lies alongside the river Wandle (which marks the boundary of the parish), an area rich in early industrial history. It was once the site of Wandlebank/Wandle Park House owned from 1791-1821 by James Perry who owned the Merton Corn Mill and was also editor of the Morning Chronicle, founded in 1770. A memorial to Perry is located in Merton parish church of St Mary's. Corn milling had been an important industry on the Wandle from Medieval times. Historically the River Wandle used to flow through the site of the park before it was straightened, when the old course was left as an arm of the river and subsequently dried up. Now restored, the river flows south to north across the park, with a reedbed enclosing the southern end of the stream.

The name of the property appears as Wandlebank House on the OS 25 ins Map of 1894/7 (London CXLII) and 5 ft to 1 mile map of 1894/5 (London XIV.29); however it is marked as Wandle Park House on the Surrey OS maps, 25 ins of 1911/13 and the revision of 1934/5 (Surrey VII.16). The latter map shows a large rectangular Swimming Bath in the south of the park east of the Mill Pond - which is marked (National Trust); this has disappeared by 1950/51 (OS 1:1250 TQ2670SE-A) although trees possibly indicate its site. This map shows Wandle Park House as a Child Welfare Clinic. The revision of 1966 shows that the house is no longer there (TQ2670SE-B).

Wandlebank/Wandle Park House and grounds were purchased by Wimbledon Corporation for a public park and vested in the National Trust; in December 1905 Mrs Richardson Evans of Wimbledon presented Wandle Park Mill to the National Trust in memory of her brother John Feeney. Wandle Park opened on 11 July 1907, and was of informal design consisting of grass, a linear path, with trees generally beside the river. A 3-sided stone drinking fountain at the southern end of the park commemorates the opening and has a plaque with inscriptions on three sides, one of which is as follows: 'This garden is given for the enjoyment of the people of Wimbledon and Merton in memory of John Feeney of Birmingham and Berkswell, one who loved nature and his fellow men'. It was later surrounded by a broken circle of planting, part of re-landscaping works within the park by Merton Groundwork Trust in 2003.

In 1910 the Mill Pond Garden was added to the park, purchased by public subscription and presented to the National Trust. The pond dates from the late C18th, created as a reservoir for the Merton Corn Mill but had since silted up and was infilled between the wars. Also in the park is a C19th stone drinking fountain erected through private subscription in memory of Robert Bloomfield Fenwick (1835-1897), who had lived at Wandle Park from 1867-1895 and was instrumental in the founding and building of All Saints Parish Church (q.v.). It also commemorates Harry Polland Fenwick, his father in-law, and once featured medallions of heads at the top, which are now missing. 

In 2003, the re-design of Wandle Park was completed, undertaken through Merton Groundwork Trust with funds from the Environment Agency, LB Merton, local business Connolly's Leatherworks and the European LIFE Budget. The aim was to transform the park's wetland features along the river, with design input from schools and local residents. The improvement works included re-design of the gates and railings at the south entrance, new paths, as well as restoriation works connected with the river, which once again flows south to north diagonally across the park from its southern corner. Much of its length the river is gravel-bottomed, and in the southern end is a reedbed.

Wandle Park is one of the sites on the council's Nelson Trail designed to allow people to walk in the footsteps of Britain’s greatest naval hero, Admiral Lord Nelson, who lived at Merton Palace in the early 1800s with Emma and Sir William Hamilton. Nelson is thought to have visited Wandle Park House (demolished in 1962) with the Hamiltons on a number of occasions. 

Wandle Park is also on the Wandle Trail, a 20km walking and cycling route following the Wandle River from East Croydon to the Thames at Wandsworth Town. Established in September 1988 by the Wandle Group in association with the Wandle Industrial Museum, it continues to be promoted by the Wandle Trail Group, which is formed of representatives from the London Boroughs of Wandsworth, Merton and Sutton, together with Groundwork Merton, Sustrans and Wandle News. It is designated part of the National Cycle Network.

The Friends of Colliers Wood Parks and Green Spaces, formed in September 2020 under the auspices of the Colliers Wood Residents Association, is involved in  maintenance of Wandle Park, together with Colliers Wood Recreation Ground and the River Wandle. 

Sources consulted:

Ian Yarham, Dave Dawson, Martin Boyle, Rebecca Holliday 'Nature Conservation in Merton, Ecology Handbook 29', London Ecology Unit, 1998; Patrick Loobey, 'Merton, Morden & Mitcham, Britain in Old Photographs', Sutton, 1996, p.14; LB Merton, 'The Nelson Trail leaflet' (https://www.merton.gov.uk/system/files/nelson-trail-leaflet_0.pdf); Wandle Trail: see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wandle_Trail; https://www.walkwheelcycletrust.org.uk/find-a-route-on-the-national-cycle-network/wandle-trail/

Grid ref:

TQ266705 (526650,170550)

Size in hectares:

3.82

Site ownership:

LB Merton

Site management:

idverde; Friends of Wandle Park

Date(s):

1907

Designer(s):

Listed structures:

LBII: Drinking fountain. Local list:

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:

Yes

Conservation Area name:

Wandle Valley

Tree Preservation Order:

No

Nature Conservation Area:

Yes - Borough Importance II (Wandle River)

Green Belt:

No

Metropolitan Open Land:

Yes

Special Policy Area:

Yes - Archaeological Priority Zone

Other LA designation:

Public Open Space. Green Corridor

Wandle Park - Photo: Colin Wing
Date taken: 01/03/21 14:39

Click a photo to enlarge.

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