Leader's Gardens

Leader's Gardens is a public urban park on the banks of the River Thames in the London Borough of Wandsworth, between Putney and Barnes town centres.

Exodus in the centre of the park, with playground behind and river to the right.

Geography

The park has an area of 1.267 hectares, there are entrances from Putney Embankment on the north west, Ashlone Road to the south and Festing Road to the east.[1] The small river Beverley Brook runs along the west side of the park and into the Thames.

At the north-west corner there is an old council building, now occupied by the Wandsworth, Chelsea and Fulham Sea Cadets and other youth groups. The park is part of Putney Embankment Conservation Area, which includes some of the oldest buildings in Putney.[2]

History

The area was laid out in 1890 on land from the estate of English politician John Temple Leader[2] by Putney Parish and Leader Estate surveyor J C Radford, it was opened in 1903.[3]

Features
Exodus by Alan Thornhill

The gate at the Putney Embankment entrance is the original from 1903 and is made of cast iron,[4] as are the railings surrounding the park, which have ornamental ball finials topped with tall spikes.[2]

The Putney Sculpture Trail by sculpturer Alan Thornhill begins in the park, Exodus is in the centre of the park and was installed in 2008.[5][6]

Wildlife

The park has mature horse chestnut trees[7] and a bug hotel was added in 2017[8]

Amenities

LooLoo's cafe is in the park and has public toilets[9]

The children's playground is for under 7 year olds,[10] new equipment was installed in 2012[11] with a rubber surface,[12] and there is also skateboard area.

In 2017 a new play garden was laid out with logs and stepping stones.[13]

Sports grounds

There are three all weather tennis courts on the south side of the park[14][15] which can be booked via All Star Tennis.[16]

Transport

The park is served by Transport for London buses 22 and 265 which stop on the Lower Richmond road, Putney Bridge tube station (District line) and Putney railway station (Southwestern Railway) are both a 15 minute walk from the park.[17] The Santander Cycles Putney Pier docking station is an 8 minute walk from the park.[18]

References
  1. "Site Details - Greenspace Information for Greater London". discover-london.gigl.org.uk. Greenspace Information for Greater London CIC. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  2. "Putney Embankment Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Strategy" (PDF). wandsworth.gov.uk/. Wandsworth Borough Council. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  3. Gardens (en), Parks and. "Leader's Gardens". parksandgardens.org/. Parks and Gardens. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  4. Gardens (en), Parks and. "Leader's Gardens". parksandgardens.org/. Parks and Gardens. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  5. "Putney sculpture trail". www.wandsworth.gov.uk/. Wandsworth Borough Council. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  6. "Putney Sculpture Trail". www.alanthornhill.co.uk. Alan Thornhill. 8 August 2013. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  7. "Inventory Site Record - Leader's Gardens". londongardenstrust.org/. London Gardens Trust. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  8. "From potholes to new roads and pavements - upgrade complete at Putney Vale". wandsworth.gov.uk/. Wandsworth Borough Council. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  9. "A Tale Of Two Toilets – Loo Loo's & Toulous". thedailyconstitutional.co.uk/. The Daily Constitutional. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  10. "Site Details - Greenspace Information for Greater London". discover-london.gigl.org.uk. Greenspace Information for Greater London CIC. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  11. "LMCT Grants". www.lmct.org.uk. London Marathon Charitable Trust. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  12. "Leader's Gardens". redlynchleisure.co.uk/. Redlynch Leisure. 10 June 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  13. "From potholes to new roads and pavements - upgrade complete at Putney Vale". wandsworth.gov.uk/. Wandsworth Borough Council. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  14. "Leaders Gardens Tennis Courts". www.allstartennis.co.uk. Thrive Wandsworth. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  15. "Refurbishment at Putney's Leaders Gardens Tennis Courts". positivelyputney.co.uk/. Positively Putney. 16 February 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  16. "Where we are". allstartennis.co.uk/. All Star Tennis. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  17. Gardens (en), Parks and. "Leader's Gardens". parksandgardens.org/. Parks and Gardens. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  18. "Find a docking station". tfl.gov.uk/. Transport for London. Retrieved 2 April 2021.

51.468136°N 0.2229805°W / 51.468136; -0.2229805

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