Inventory Site Record

From 1771-1834 The Oaks was the seat of the Earls of Derby who used it as a base for horse racing. Two famous Epsom races, The Oaks and The Derby were conceived here and first run in 1779 and 1780, named after the house and the 12th Earl respectively. The house was demolished by 1960 but a number of outbuildings survive and the extensive parkland retains the framework of the park created in the 1770s. It is now partly a public park and partly sports centre and golf course. with many mature and semi mature trees.

Previous / Other name:

The Oaks

Site location:

Croydon Lane, Carshalton

Postcode:

SM7 3BA

What 3 Words:

span.wash.acute

Type of site:

Public Park;, Public Open Land

Borough:

Sutton

Open to public?

Yes

Opening times:

unrestricted

Special conditions:

Facilities:

Café (open daily, 9am-5pm; closed for 1 week over Christmas), toilets (including disabled), Nature walk (leaflet), car park

Events:

Public transport:

Rail. Carshalton Beeches. Bus: 154, 166, S4

Citymapper    
Google Map    
streetmap.co.uk

Research updated:

01/03/2012

Last minor changes:

14/07/2022

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

There was a house here from the C16th or earlier, which was rebuilt in the mid C18th, an Italianate villa probably built for the banker Thomas Gosling and designed by the architect Sir Robert Taylor. The 12th Earl of Derby later owned the house, employing Robert Adam to rebuild it although this was never completed. His grandson, the 13th Earl, had the property until 1834. The parkland was laid out for the 12th Earl in the 1770s and it may have been influenced by Capability Brown who worked at the Earl's Knowsley estate in St Helens, Merseyside in 1775/6. The Oaks was demolished between 1957-60 but its site is visible as a platform to the east of the old buildings that remain. These include the bake-house of c.1870, which has been restored by Friends of Oaks Park, stables and a few outbuildings, the kitchen garden walls and a grotto-like structure. The Friends of Oaks Park was set up in 1997 and works in partnership with Sutton Council to promote the park, improve its amenities, and also undertakes projects from tree planting and spring bulb planting to maintenance of park benches.

Sources consulted:

Ben Weinreb & Christopher Hibbert, 'The London Encyclopaedia' (Macmillan, revised ed. 1993) 'The London Encyclopaedia', Macmillan, 1993; LB Sutton Heritage website

Grid ref:

TQ272615 (527250,161550)

Size in hectares:

33.57

Site ownership:

LB Sutton

Site management:

Parks Service; Friends of Oaks Park

Date(s):

c.1867

Designer(s):

Listed structures:

LBII: Grotto and flanking vault; Former stables, Billiard rooms and coach house wings on south and east side of the stables

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:

Yes - Borough Importance I

Green Belt:

Yes

Metropolitan Open Land:

No

Special Policy Area:

No

Other LA designation:

Site of Wildlife value

Oaks Park - Site of the House - Photo: Colin Wing
Date taken: 25/02/19 13:49

Click a photo to enlarge.

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